A shrub or tree to 15 m high by 1 m girth, of fringing and savanna forest from Ghana to W Cameroons and Fernando Po, and extending to the Congo basin.The tree is occasionally cultivated in Zaïre. The wood is soft, easy to saw, of an exceptional durability and is held to be an excellent timber for interior carpentry and cabinetry (4). It is also used for paddles on river-craft (2).The tree is considered in Ivory Coast to be effective on skin-affections, sores and itch: leaves and bark are pounded up with citron juice to a paste, and the liquid is expressed for use as a lotion, while the residual lees may be used with vigorous rubbing. In the case of sores, the lees are applied as a wet dressing under a bandage (3). The plant is also used as a rejuvant and diuretic, and is given [methods not stated] for oedema of the legs and elephantiasis of the scrotum, to treat chancres and rheumatic pain, and is taken for treatment of the respiratory tract and in swamp-fever (1).This species is very similar in appearance to M. tomentosa. They share several vernacular names. The other usages of M. tomentosa may very well also apply.