Gamal originates from Central America and has long been cultivated and naturalized in Mexico, Central America, and northern South America. This plant was also introduced to the Caribbean and West Africa, extending to Asian countries including Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and India. Its distribution in Indonesia covers almost the entire archipelago, such as Sumatra, Kalimantan, Java, Madura, Bali, Nusa Tenggara, Sulawesi, Ambon, Maluku, Ternate, Tidore, and Irian Jaya (Papua).

Gamal is a multipurpose tree widely cultivated for various functions. In the past, it was often used as a shade tree for plantation crops, but now Gamal is also used as a hedge plant, ornamental plant, green manure, livestock feed, erosion prevention plant, for reclaiming barren land and stabilizing soil, as well as a vegetable (its flowers). Its wood is widely used as a material in the production of charcoal, furniture, and agricultural tools. Additionally, this plant has other important uses as a traditional medicine, where Guatemalan communities have used its bark and leaves to treat skin diseases. Gamal can also be used in the cosmetics industry as a hair conditioner and skin softener

This plant can grow well in moist regions up to dry climates and is widely found along roadsides, riverbanks, floodplains, fields, gardens, yards as a hedge plant, and open places, at altitudes of 1–2,000 m a.s.l.. This species can grow well in various soil types in areas where the annual daytime temperature is within the range of 15–30 

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 C (but can tolerate 12–44 

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 C), with an average annual rainfall in the range of 1,200–2,300 mm (but tolerates 600–3,500 mm). The soil acidity (pH) is typically in the range of 5.5–6.2, but it is tolerant of 4.5–8.

• Root: Taproot, highly fibrous, brownish-white.

• Stem: Erect, round, with a crusty/flaky bark, woody, grayish-brown, easily cracked, the bark surface is somewhat rough, with small cracks, and sparsely lenticellate.

• Leaves: Compound, imparipinnate (odd-pinnate), alternately arranged, consisting of about 13–21 leaflets. The leaflets are elliptic to oblong, the base is blunt to rounded, the tip is tapering, the margin is entire, dark green on the upper surface, and light green on the lower surface, glabrous (hairless). The stalk is 8–12 cm long, cylindrical, glabrous, thickened at the base, and light green.

• Flowers: Pink and tend to fade to pale purple as they age, with a pale yellow center. The inflorescence is compound, racemose (karang), bisexual (hermaphroditic), emerging from the leaf axils. The stamens are yellow, and the pistil is white.

• Fruit: Pod type, flat, 10–11.5 cm long, containing 3–19 seeds, and green in color.

• Seeds: Ellipsoid shape, small, shiny, colored brown to black.

• Propagation is done vegetatively (stem/branch cuttings) and generatively (seed).

• Propagation using cuttings is done by selecting a stem or branch that is neither too old nor too young, from a parent tree that is free of disease, with a diameter of 1.5–2 cm, a length of 15–30 cm, then cut diagonally and immediately planted in the growing medium.

• It is a remedy for hair growth (fertilizer), skin softening, treats eczema, scabies, itching, prickly heat, boils, heals wounds and burns, bruises, colds (masuk angin), coughs, flu, fatigue, fever, sprains, fractures, headaches, rheumatism, skin tumors, urticaria (hives), an application on the skin to repel insects, and fights bacterial and protozoal infections.

• Formosin, formononetin, gliricidin-6a-gliricidol-9a, medicarpin (pterocarpan), 7,4'-dihydroxy-3'-methoxyisoflavone, 2'O-methylsepiol, tannins, trihydroxyflavone, stigmastanol glucoside, 3'4-dihydroxy-trans-cinnamic acid octacosyl ester 2, methyl-3(E)-pentenyl ether, 3-methyl-2-butanol, 3-methoxy hexane, 1-(1-ethoxyethoxy)-2-hexene, 2-decanol, coumarins, hexadecanoic acid, and essential oils (pentadecanal, (Z)-phytol, methyl linolenate, nonanal, myrtenol, nerolidol).