Areca nut is native to South East Asia. It invades forest gaps and edges and it is capable of invading undisturbed forest. It is also an understorey plant of tropical, high rainfall forests, from sea level to 1,000 meters or more. In Kampala, Areca nutcan be found at Baskerville avenue,within Soweto in Makerere precinct among other places.

Betel palm is an evergreen single-stemmed palm tree that can grow up to 30 meters tall but is more commonly around 15 meters. The straight, unbranched stem can be 25 - 40cm in diameter, topped by leaves up to 2 meters long. The stem, marked with scars of fallen leaves in a regular annulated form, becomes visible only when the palm is about 3 years old.

BARK: slender, green trunk ages to grey with prominent white leaf scars.

LEAVES: adult palm has 7-12 open leaves, each with a sheath, a rachis and leaflets. The leaf stalk extends as the midrib until the end of the leaf and ends as leaflets.

FLOWERS: Male flowers very numerous, sessile, without bracts; calyx 1-leaved, small, 3-cornered, 3-parted; petals 3, oblong, rigid striated; stamens 6, anthers sagittate. Female flowers solitary or 2 or 3 at or near the base of each ramification of the spadix, sessile, without bracts; sepals permanent; staminodes 6, connate, styles scarcely any; stigmas 3, short, triangular.

FRUIT: monolocular, one-seeded berry, 3.8-5 cm long, smooth orange or scarlet when ripe, with a fibrous outer layer.

Edible: seeds are eaten raw, young leaves, inflorescences and the sweet inner part of the shoots are cooked and eaten as vegetables, skin of the fruit is edible, nut contains 8-12% fat that has characteristics comparable with hydrogenated coconut oil, the leaves of arecanut can be used as a fermentation stimulant in industrial alcohol production. http://tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php id=Areca+catechu

Agroforestry: can be used as a live standard for training the pepper plants, can be used when intercropping.

Medicine: seed, areca nut, kernels of green and mature fruits. http://tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php id=Areca+catechu

The leaves are used for thatching and can be used for carrying water due to the fact that they can be converted into strong and durable water buckets.

The leaf sheath is made into cups, plates, and bags for holding plantains, sweetmeats, and fish while the flower sheath is made into skullcaps, small umbrellas, and dishes.

The husk fibers can be used in making items like thick boards, fluffy cushions and non-woven fabrics. Brown wrapping paper can be prepared from blends of areca nut and bamboo or banana pseudostem pulp.

The nut contains 8-12% fat that has characteristics comparable with hydrogenated coconut oil. It contains both saturated and unsaturated fatty acids.

The plant is a good source of tannins that are used for dyeing clothes, as adhesives in plywood manufacture etc.

The outside portion of betel palm stem forms a useful building material that is widely used for a variety of construction purposes.

The timber from wood can also be used in making a variety of utility articles such as rulers, shelves and waste paper baskets.

An ornamental palm.