Chamaecytisus proliferus (Cytisus palmensis, Cytisus proliferus, Chamaecytisus palmensis) Fabaceae Canary Islands Am: Tree lucern Eng: Tagasaste, Tree lucerne Propagation Ecology Seedlings. Widely planted in the Mediterranean area and Australia as a browse and forage Seed shrub. Also grown in USA, Latin America, About 45,000 seed per kg. India and some other African countries. Treatment: Inoculate the seed with cow‑ Recorded as invasive in Australia. pea inoculums. Immerse the seed in hot Introduced to Ethiopia in the 1980s. It is water for a minute. growing well in moist and dry highlands and could be successful in Moist and Wet Storage: Seeds can be stored for 4–5 Weyna Dega and Dega agroclimatic zones, years. 1,700–3,300 m. It grows best in high‑ Management rainfall cool highlands. Plant seedlings when two months old. Uses Harvest fodder frequently by pruning to Firewood, fodder (leaves, pods), bee forage, encourage low, bushy and readily accessible mulch, nitrogen fixation, soil conservation, re‑growth and to reduce the amount of soil improvement, windbreak, live fence. woody stems. Description Remarks An evergreen shrub or small tree to about Tolerates drought, repeated browsing or 6 m. LEAVES: Compound with 3 stalked harvesting once established. The leaves are leaflets, the central largest to 7 cm, narrow excellent fodder with a high food value. and oblong to a pointed tip, narrowed to Small birds are fond of the seeds. Relatively the base, stalk to 2 cm long. FLOWERS: free of pests and diseases, this species needs White. FRUIT: Hairy pods to 5 cm long to be protected from grazers at first. Growth containing 8–10 small black seeds. is slow until the deep roots are established. 172 | Useful Trees and Shrubs of Ethiopia The Species | 173.