ASEAN's 100 Most Precious Plants

ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

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ASEAN Regional Centre for Biodiversity Conservation

ASEAN’s 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS COMPILED AND WRITTEN BY

BAJA-LAPIS ● DAVID ● REYES ● AUDIJE EDITED BY

URIARTE AND LOPEZ

ASEAN’s 100 Most Precious Plants ISBN 971-8986-55-3 Compiled and Written by Aida C. Baja-Lapis, Myra E. David, Clarinda G. Reyes and Bernadette S. Audije Technical Consultants John R. MacKinnon, Gregorio I. Texon, Edwino S. Fernando, and Justo P. Rojo Published as a tribute to the 2003 ASEAN Environment Year by the European Union-ASEAN Regional Centre for Biodiversity Conservation (ARCBC) Contributors Khamleck Xydala, Sengdeuane Wayakone, Kol Vathana, Neou Bonheur, Bouaphanh Phanthavong, Tran Ngoc Cuong, Vu Xuan Phuong, Le Xuan Canh, Ruth Kiew, Luu Dam Cu, Kongmany Sydara, Hoang Van Sam, Joffrey hj Ali Ahmad, Mahmud Bin Haji Yussof, Le Trong Son, Agung Sedayu, Nelson Pampolina, Dennis Pulan, Encarnacion Saraos, Kharina Bueser and Bogor Botanic Garden Staff Edited by Monina T. Uriarte and Eric M. Lopez Design and Layout by Nanie S. Gonzales Reproduction of this book in whole and in part in whatever manner is not allowed except for citation in scholarly journals and other publications or review for print and electronic mass media.

Sale of this book is prohibited unless authorised by the European Commission.

The European Commision Delegation of the European Union in the Philippines 9/f Salustiana D. Ty Tower 104 Paseo de Roxas cor. Perea Street Legaspi Village, Makati City, Philippines www.delphl.cec.eu.int Views, comments, and opinions in this book are of the authors and do not necessarily reflect a statement of concurrence by ARCBC. Rights reserved to ASEAN Regional Centre for Biodiversity Conservation.

Maiden Issue 1,000 November 2004 Printed in the Philippines 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0

Table of Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................................................................. v Organizing the Precious Plants ........................................................................................................ vi Edible Amorphohallus paeoniifolius (Dennstedt) Nicolson .......................................................... 2 Arenga pinnata (Wurmb) Merr. ............................................................................................................. 4 Borassus flabellifer L. .................................................................................................................................... 6 Canarium L. ............................................................................................................................................................... 8 Caryota L. ............................................................................................................................................................... 10 Dendrocalamus giganteus (Wallich) ex Munro ................................................................. 12 Diplazium esculentum (Retz.) Sw. ................................................................................................. 14 Gnetum gnemon L. ......................................................................................................................................... 16 Ipomoea aquatica Forssk. ...................................................................................................................... 18 Metroxylon sago Rottb. ........................................................................................................................... 20 Nelumbo nucifera Gaertner .................................................................................................................. 22 Solanum melongena L. ............................................................................................................................... 24 Tamarindus indicus L. ................................................................................................................................ 26 Fibres and Barks Bambusa vulgaris Schrader ex Wendland ............................................................................. 30 Calamus L. .............................................................................................................................................................. 32 Rhizophora L. ....................................................................................................................................................... 34 Fruits Artocarpus heterophyllus Lamk ....................................................................................................... 38 Averrhoa bilimbi L. ......................................................................................................................................... 40 Citrus maxima (Burm.) Merr. .............................................................................................................. 42 Cocos nucifera L. ............................................................................................................................................ 44 Diospyros blancoi A. DC. ........................................................................................................................ 46 Durio Adans. ......................................................................................................................................................... 48 Garcinia mangostana L. ............................................................................................................................ 50

Lansium domesticum Correa ............................................................................................................... 52 Litchi chinensis Sonn. ................................................................................................................................. 54 Mangifera indica L. ....................................................................................................................................... 56 Musa L. ...................................................................................................................................................................... 58 Nephelium lappaceum L. .......................................................................................................................... 60 Salacca zalacca (Gaertner) Voss .................................................................................................... 62 Sandoricum koetjape (Burm. f.) Merr. ...................................................................................... 64 Syzygium jambos (L.) Alston ............................................................................................................... 66 Grain Oryza sativa L. ................................................................................................................................................... 70 Horticulture Areca catechu L. .............................................................................................................................................. 74 Bauhinia L. ............................................................................................................................................................. 76 Cassia L. ................................................................................................................................................................... 78 Cyrtostachys renda Blume .................................................................................................................... 80 Ixora L. ....................................................................................................................................................................... 82 Medinilla magnifica Lindley .................................................................................................................. 84 Paphiopedilum Pfitzer ................................................................................................................................. 86 Phalaenopsis Blume ...................................................................................................................................... 87 Strongylodon macrobotrys A. Gray ............................................................................................. 88 Vanda Jones ex R. Br. ................................................................................................................................ 89 Medicine Amomum villosum Lour. ........................................................................................................................... 92 Calophyllum inophyllum L. ..................................................................................................................... 94 Centella asiatica (L.) Urb. ....................................................................................................................... 96 Coccinia grandis (L.) Voigt. ................................................................................................................... 98 Dillenia indica L. ............................................................................................................................................ 100 Dioscorea hispida Dennst. .................................................................................................................. 102

ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

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Dracaena cambodiana Pierre ex Gagnep ............................................................................. 104 Eurycoma longifolia Jack .................................................................................................................... 106 Momordica charantia L. ........................................................................................................................ 108 Morinda citrifolia L. ................................................................................................................................... 110 Morus alba L. ................................................................................................................................................... 112 Rauvolfia serpentina (L.) Benth. ex Kurz ............................................................................. 114 Trichosanthes kirilowii Maxim. ..................................................................................................... 116 Vitex negundo L. ............................................................................................................................................ 118 Poisons Antiaris toxicaria Lesch. ....................................................................................................................... 122 Aristolochia tagala Cham. .................................................................................................................. 124 Azadirachta indica A. H. L. Juss. ................................................................................................ 126 Derris elliptica (Wallich) Benth. ..................................................................................................... 128 Strychnos nux-vomica L. ...................................................................................................................... 130 Resins and Saps Aquilaria malaccensis Lamk ............................................................................................................. 134 Cananga odorata (Lamk) Hook.f. & Thomson ............................................................... 136 Cinnamomum camphora (L.) Nees & Ebermaier .......................................................... 138 Cymbopogon citratus (DC.) Stapf .............................................................................................. 140 Dyera costulata (Miq.) Hook. f. ..................................................................................................... 142 Ficus elastica Roxb. ex. Hornem. ................................................................................................ 144 Fokienia hodginsii (Dunn) A. Henry & H. Thomas ...................................................... 146 Hopea Roxb. ...................................................................................................................................................... 148 Melaleuca cajuputi Powell ................................................................................................................. 150 Pinus merkusii Jungh. & de Vriese ............................................................................................ 152 Santalum album L. ...................................................................................................................................... 154 Styrax tonkinensis (Pierre) Craib ex Hartwich .............................................................. 156 Scientific Wonder Amorphophallus titanium Becc. .................................................................................................... 158 Azolla pinnata R. Br. ................................................................................................................................. 159 Nepenthes rajah Hook. f. ..................................................................................................................... 161 Rafflesia R. Brown ..................................................................................................................................... 162

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Spices Cinnamomum Schaeffer ....................................................................................................................... 164 Kaempferia galanga L. ............................................................................................................................ 166 Myristica fragrans Houtt. ................................................................................................................... 168 Piper nigrum L. ................................................................................................................................................ 170 Syzygium aromaticum (L.) Merr. & Perry .......................................................................... 172 Timber Adenanthera L. ............................................................................................................................................... 176 Agathis Salisb. ................................................................................................................................................ 178 Alstonia scholaris (L.) R. Br. ............................................................................................................. 180 Dipterocarpus Gaertner f. ................................................................................................................... 182 Eucalyptus deglupta Blume ............................................................................................................... 184 Eusideroxylon zwageri Teijsm. & Binnend. ....................................................................... 186 Gonystylus bancanus (Miq.) Kurz ............................................................................................... 188 Intsia Thouars ................................................................................................................................................. 190 Oncosperma tigillarium (Jack.) Ridl. ........................................................................................ 192 Pterocarpus indicus Willd. .................................................................................................................. 194 Shorea Roxb. ex Gaertner f. ............................................................................................................. 196 Tectona grandis L. f. ................................................................................................................................ 198 Useful Flowers and Leaves Jasminum sambac (L.) Aiton ............................................................................................................ 202 Johannesteijsmannia magnifica J. Dransfield ............................................................... 204 Livistona rotundifolia (Lamk) Martius .................................................................................... 206 Nypa fruticans Wurmb ........................................................................................................................... 208 Pandanus amaryllifolius Roxb. ....................................................................................................... 210 Thysanolaena latifolia (Roxb. ex Hornem.) Honda ..................................................... 212 Glossary .................................................................................................................................................................... 215 Index to Scientific Names ................................................................................................................. 217 References ............................................................................................................................................................. 218 About the Authors ....................................................................................................................................... 222

Introduction

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ertainly, there are over a hundred important plants in the ASEAN Region. Against this rich backdrop, the ASEAN Regional Centre for Biodiversity Conservation (ARCBC) takes an emblematic initiative in taking stock of the 100 plant species that have deep roots in the Region’s diverse customs, cuisine, crafts, commerce, and cures.

As history would point out, it was the Region’s spices that lured China and Europe to its shores and cast the trade winds for several hundreds of years across the expanse of the Pacific and into the narrowing straits of Moluccas and into the depths of its forestlands. Where stakes over these spices have gone as high as the price of gold, the colonisation of the Region followed which subsequently left an indelible mark in the social and cultural well-being of the ASEAN peoples.

This book is ARCBC’s contribution to the 2003 ASEAN Environment Year Celebration and constitutes as a concrete effort of collaboration between ARCBC and National Biodiversity Reference Units of ASEAN member-countries. This book is two years in the making and comes through from a deliberate effort to truly capture what to the Region followed precious plants.

The identification of these plants was based on the knowledge of botanists in Southeast Asia using a matrix of criteria of which a more important aspect deals on how these plants since their discovery have supported and sustained the lives of ASEAN peoples.

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Organising the Precious Plants Categories. This book is organised into 12 categories of plant uses. These categories are edible, fibres and barks, fruits, grain, horticulture, medicine, poisons, resins and saps, scientific wonder, spices, timber, and useful flowers and leaves. Whilst most of the plants in this book have multiple uses, they are singularly categorised under their most salient use. However, descriptive accounts on their other uses are also included to further illustrate the depth and extent of their importance to the lives of the ASEAN peoples.

Some plants are presented at species level whilst some at genus level. The difficulty attendant upon the identification of plants at species level combined with many useful species within each genus resulted to presenting the whole genera such as Calamus, Caryota, Rhizophora, Durio, Musa, Bauhinia, Cassia, Ixora, Paphiopedalum, Phalaenopsis, Vanda, Hopea, Rafflesia, Cinammomum, Adenanthera, Agathis, Dipterocarpus, Intsia, and Shorea.

Plant distinction. Each species or genus is described based on its most notable and distinct features: how most Southeast Asians perceive or describe the plant. Some photos are provided showing these features and some literary works like poems are presented describing the plant. Whenever photos of specific species are not available, a representative to its genus level is provided.

Description. The book is written in popular format and packaged as a coffee table book to have a wider reach of the reading public. A glossary is provided for terms that cannot be translated or simplified into common language. Photos were likewise used to better show to the readers the general appearance and distinct features of the plants.

Common names. Volumes of PROSEA Book were the main reference for plant names and other information. Whilst conscious effort was done to provide the reader with local names of the plants, only popularly used local names see print in this book. The complexity in etymology-oriented research that is challenged by diverse ideolects and other nuances of local dialects in Region makes the identification of the plants by their local names an enormously difficult task. As a guide, acronyms of the ASEAN member-countries using the international ISO3 System precede the plants’ common or local names. The acronyms for each ASEAN member-countries are as follow: BRN : Brunei, KHM : Cambodia, IDN : Indonesia, LAO: Lao PDR, MYS : Malaysia, MMR : Myanmar, PHL : Philippines, SGP : Singapore, THA : Thailand, VNM : Vietnam. ENG is used to denote English.

Uses. The uses of various plant parts (e.g., leaves, flowers, stems, roots, seeds) described in this book are an illustration to reflect the degree of importance of the plant to the lives of the ASEAN peoples. The value of these plants therefore is forged by the extent of the usefulness of their parts.

Distribution and habitat. All the presented plants in this book are indigenous to Southeast Asia.

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Edible Edible

Araceae

Amorphophallus paeoniifolius (Dennstedt) Nicolson

T

he solitary blossoms of the giant elephant-foot yam emit a stench of a rotten meat which can be smelled from a 10-meter distance, depending on the direction of the wind.

borne a single-stemmed spadix on the tuber, partly enveloped by a well-developed, funnel-shaped, spathe with one side free with overlapping margins; the lower and upper portion

of the spadix is composed of female and male flowers, respectively, distinguished by a transition zone. Fruits are 1to 3-seeded. It may be propagated by seeds, tubers or tissue culture.

Uses: The tubers are rich in starch. They are cut in fine slices and dried in the sun to oxidize off oxalic acid before cooking.

The starch can be extracted and made into gelatinous noodles.

Its seeds and tubers are also used as counter-irritants, tonic and laxative. Potentially, all Amorphophallus species can be cultivated as ornamentals.

Description: The elephant-foot yam (derived from its huge and heavy solitary tuber that looks like an elephant foot) is a perennial plant with no persistent stem above the ground and lives for an indefinite period, dying back seasonally and producing new growth from the tuber. The tubers are often depressed on top and globose-shaped with some lateral outgrowths or “eyes” which are potential new plants; large when mature, up to 30 cm in diameter and 20 cm long, weighing up to 25 kg; the lateral outgrowth tubers are up to 10 cm by 4 cm. The leaves are solitary or may appear many because of leaf growths on accessory tubers. The flowers are

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Photo by M. David

Common names: KHM: toal; IDN: suweg (cultivated), walur, eles (wild); LAO: duk düa (general), kabuki (southern); MYS: loki, ubi kekek; MMR: wa-u-bin, wa-u-pin; PHL: pungapung (Tagalog), anto (Bisaya), bagong (Bikol); SGP: elephant yam; THA: buk (general), buk khung khok (Chon buri), bia buea (MaeHong Son), man suran (central), hua buk (Pattani); VNM: khoai nua, nua chuông, nua thai, nua xiem (Hua Thien Hue); ENG: elephant yam, sweet yam, telinga potato

Habit

Distribution and habitat: A. paeoniifolius occurs wild and cultivated from Madagascar eastwards via India and Southeast Asia to Polynesia, including also southern China and northern Australia. Because it escapes from cultivation and naturalizes easily, its exact origin is unknown. A. paeoniifolius usually grows in secondary vegetation, in forest margins and thickets, teak forests, village groves, usually under some shade, up to 900 m altitude. Shade, up to 50% to 60%, promotes tuber production. The optimum average temperatures range from 25°C to 35°C, with optimum soil temperatures of 22°C to 30°C. It develops best with an evenly distributed rainfall of 1000 mm to 1500 mm during the growing period. Dry conditions stimulate tuber growth.

Habit (close-up) Photo by J. MacKinnon

EDIBLE

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Arecaceae

Arenga pinnata (Wurmb) Merr.

T

his palm species is widely grown in the tropics and is used to produce sugar, sago, and alcoholic drinks.

clusters which appear first are at the upper part of the stem and the male ones which appear later are lower on the stem. Both female and male flowers are many (by the thousands) in a

cluster. The fruits are rounded to ellipsoid drupe, fleshy, green turning yellow and black after falling. The seeds, 2 to 3 in a fruit are black.

Fruits (above); habit (opposite page); Arenga sweets (inset)

Uses: All parts of the palm are used, and for a multitude of products. The flower stalk is an excellent source of sugar. The best way to collect them is to cut the pendulous inflorescence from its stem and collect the sap exuding from the cut stalk in a bucket or large bamboo. The sap is boiled down to make red sugar or left to ferment for 1 to 2 days to form alcoholic “soquir” beer. The seeds, if carefully extracted and boiled in sugar, make a pleasant sweetmeat.

Caution: The flesh covering the seeds may cause dermatitis.

Other food products are starch, extracted from the pith of the trunk, which may be used to prepare specialty foods such as ‘bakso” (Indonesia). Young leaves, still white, are eaten in the same way as palm cabbage. Bees collect excellent honey from the flowers, and sweetmeat (‘kolang kaling’, Indonesia) is made by boiling the white endosperm of immature seeds with sugar.

The production of these secondary foodstuffs is limited where tapping takes precedence.

The shaggy material at the base of the leaves makes an excellent rope as it is strong and resists decay. The leaflets are collected and bound together to make house brooms. The leaves make a good thatch. Local hunters make an excellent carrying

Description: The sugar palm is a moderate to tall, unbranched, hapaxanthic palm that bears flowers and fruits in a sequence along the stem from top to bottom then starts to die afterwards.

Its roots are black, very strong, growing to over 10 m long and penetrating the soil to about 3 m deep. Its trunk is covered with late-falling or persistent clasping stalks with long, black grey to blackish fibres of broken-off dead leaves. The leaves are up to 10 m long, pinnate, the stalks with fibrous sheathes at the base; the leaflets are crowded along the rachis and set in a number of planes. The flowers are in clusters (inflorescence), usually either male or female, unisexual, hanging, often more than 2 m long, arising from the leaf axils, the female inflorescences flower

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Photos by M. David

Common names: KHM: chuëk, chraé; IDN: aren, enau, kawung; LAO: ta:aw ta:d (northern); MYS: enau, kabong, berkat; MMR: taung-ong, taw-on; PHL: kaong (Tagalog), bagobat (Bisaya), hidiok (Bisaaya); SGP: sugar palm; THA: ka chok (Champhon), chok (peninsular), tao (northern), tao kiat (Kanchanaburi), to (Trat), nao (Trang), luk chit (central), lang khai (Pattani); VNM: bung bang, doac, bang; ENG: sugar palm, areng palm

pack by laying two leaves 20 cm apart and weaving the overlapping leaflets together, the outer leaflets are tied around the buggy to be carried.

In Sumatra, the spines on the trunk are used as roofing material. They evidently act like straw, and form a waterproof covering. The trunk consists of a starchy core with many tough fibres and a woody cylinder. The attractive black and yellow wood of the trunk is used for flooring, furniture, tool handles, and as a fuel wood of high calorific value. The trunk base is easily hollowed to obtain a durable barrel or a water conduit.

Medicinal uses have been reported for the young roots (kidney stones), old roots (toothache), the fermented juice (the alcohol obtained through distillation and mixed with several herbs and roots of other plants is considered a general purpose medicine), the sugar (laxative) and the fine pulp occurring between the leaf sheaths (to speed up recovery from burn wounds). The trees are sometimes planted to mark boundaries or to prevent landslides. In certain regions, dowry is paid in the form of a few sugar palm trees.

Distribution and habitat: Its origin lies in an area covering Southeast Asia up to Irian Jaya in the east, extending northeastwards to the Ryukyu Islands (Japan) and northwest to Annam (Vietnam) and the eastern Himalayas. It is mostly found near villages and also grows wild in primary or secondary forests.

EDIBLE

5

Arecaceae

Borassus flabellifer L.

P

covering, and when cut across show a mass of fibres and edible pulp containing up to 3 seeds.

Common names: KHM: dom thuot; MYS: lontar, tal; MMR: htan, htan-taw; SGP: palmyra palm, lontar; THA: tan (general), tan tanot, tan yai (central), than (Shan-Mae Hong Son), tho-thu (Karen-Mae Hong Son), thang (Karen-Tak, Ching Mai), not (peninsular); VNM: thot-lot, thot-not; ENG: palmyra palm, great fan palm, wine palm

Uses: The chief product of the palmyra is the sweet sap (toddy).

The toddy is popular as a beverage; it is distilled to produce the alcoholic liquor called palm wine, arrack, or arak. The sap yields concentrated or crude sugar, molasses, palm candy, and vinegar.

Palmyra palm jaggery (gur) is much more nutritious than crude cane sugar. The fresh sap is reportedly a good source of vitamin B complex.

Peeled seeds yield starch that has been proposed for commercial production. Small fruits are pickled in vinegar. Its fresh pulp is reportedly rich in vitamins A and C. The yellow fruit is also used as food colouring.

There are innumerable medicinal uses for all parts of the palmyra palm. No less than 801 uses have been reported for this plant. Briefly, the young plant is said to relieve biliousness, dysentery, and gonorrhoea. Young roots are diuretic and anthelmintic, and a decoction is given in certain respiratory diseases. The ash of the spadix is taken to relieve heartburn and enlarged spleen and liver. The bark decoction, with salt, is used as a mouth-wash, and charcoal made of the bark serves as a dentifrice. Sap from the flower stalk is prized as a tonic, diuretic, stimulant, laxative and anti phlegmatic and amoebicide. Sugar made from this sap is said to counteract poisoning, and it is

almyra palms are the most numerous palms in the world next to coconut palm.

Description: The palmyra is a robust, solitary palm with a rounded crown and fan-shaped leaves, as the species name suggests. It attains up to 40 m in height with the upper part of the trunk covered with late-falling overlapping leaf-bases.

Otherwise, the trunk is smooth as sown as the leaf-bases fall off.

The fronds are large, attaining 3 m across; the stalks are about a meter long with strong deeply furrowed thorns along the two edges; the leaflets are folded, the older ones parted from the base to the pointed top. The cluster of flowers are borne among the leaves, the stalks shorter than that of the leaves, the male and female are dissimilar. The male and female flowers are borne on separate plants, both pale yellow in colour but the female ones are larger than the males. The fruits develop like that of a coconut, at first angular becoming rounded when ripe, about up to 20 cm wide with smooth leathery brown outer

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

prescribed in liver disorders. Candied, it is a remedy for coughs and various pulmonary complaints. Fresh toddy, heated to promote fermentation, is bandaged onto all kinds of ulcers. The cabbage, leaf petioles, and dried male flower spikes all have diuretic activity. The pulp of the mature fruit relieves dermatitis.

Palmyra leaves, after being dried and pressed, are bound into book pages and inscribed with elegant Sanskrit-like Balinese characters (tulisan Bali). Bali’s most important historical chronicles have been written on lontar leaves. It is also used as weaving material for hats, fans, mats, and roofs.

Its trunk on the other hand, is grounded into powder or used for building pillars. Its stem can be turned into strong textiles or fabrics, similar to hemp or flax. The flower stalk is used as insecticide and for deworming.

Distribution and habitat: Distributed from India through Southeast Asia to New Guinea and North Australia. It is particularly abundant in India, Burma (Myanmar) and Cambodia, where it is frequently planted. It is usually grown in strictly seasonal tropical or subtropical climates on sandy soil. It grows well in dry areas with 500 mm to 900 mm average annual rainfall and is quite drought resistant. It prefers elevations at around sea level, but can be found at about 800 m in altitude.

Habit Photo by J. MacKinnon

EDIBLE

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Burseraceae

Canarium L.

T

o get a taste of pili nut in the wild is exciting— one has to pound the very hard outer covering with a hard object. But pounding should be done in a way to keep the nut from being crushed.

one sex, but sometimes traces of the opposite organ are present.

The fruits are oblong drupes, supported by persistent enlarged calyx, ripening black with one nut seed. Propagation is by seeds/ seedlings or asexual methods, such as marcotting, grafting, and budding.

Uses: Young shoot is edible and used in cooking and in making green salads. Fruit is used as ingredient in cakes, candies, puddings, and ice cream. Roasted kernel is used in making chocolate. Green pulp is made into pickle.

Resin-rich wood makes an excellent firewood, houseframing, box, crates, and musical instruments. Resin or elemi used as an ingredient in plasters and ointments. It is also a valuable raw material in the manufacture of adhesives, printing inks, fireproof, and waterproof materials, paints, and varnishes.

Elemi is also used in engraving and lithography.

Oil from the pili pulp can be used in the manufacture of soap and other products. Unroasted nuts have a purgative effect.

Seed shell is chiefly used in cooking and makes an excellent fuel and component of the growing medium for orchids and anthuriums. Shell makes an attractive keyholder and ornaments.

Description: Many species of this genus are treated as minor commercial timbers and as source of edible nuts. Trees are evergreen, the male and female flowers are found in separate individuals, small- to medium-sized and sometimes large trees with buttresses. The trunk is branchless reaching up to 25 m to 45 m; bark smooth, scaly or dappled and when cut produces a strong resinous smell and clear sticky or oily exudates. The leaves are arranged in spiral formation, compound, pinnate with a terminal leaflet; the leaf and leaf stalks are often swollen; stipules usually present, entire or sometimes toothed. The inflorescences are terminal or sometimes axillary, in panicles or reduced to racemes or spikes. The flowers are regular, of only

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Fruits and nuts

Photo by M. David

Common names: BRN: adal, kedondong (Brunei Malay); IDN: kenari, kerantai, danau majang, kurihang, tandikat, damae likat, are, kituwak; MYS: kerantai (Sabah), upi, seladah (Sarawak), kedondong keruing, mantas tikus, dabang, pokok kenari; MMR: kalaw-maw; kenari; PHL: pili, piling-liitan, pagsahingin, gisaukitid; THA: makoem, han; VNM: tram, trang, trom den; ENG: pili nut, Java almond, kenari nut, Philippine nut

Distribution and habitat: Canarium consists of about 80 species and is distributed in the Old World tropics, from tropical Africa to tropical Asia, northern Australia and the Pacific. The main centre of diversity lies in the Malesian area where most species occur in the moist parts.

The pili tree grows well on both light and heavy soils. It also thrives under a wide range of climatic conditions, growing successfully from sea level to an elevation of 400 m. It has also been reported to grow and fruit well in the highlands.

Inflorescences

Habit (left); trunk (above)

Photos by M. David

EDIBLE

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Arecaceae

Caryota L.

T

hese palms look gorgeous with their skirt-like leaves covering the trunks when young.

abundant irritant needle-like crystals. Seeds are irregularly subspherical.

Uses: Trunks yield starch. In Sarawak, the sago is favoured by the native Punan for its high yield and sweet flavour. The inflorescences, especially those of C. rumphiana are tapped to produce sugar or palm wine. The palm cabbage and palm heart are edible when cooked. The fruits and seeds are also edible but the mesocarp contains the oxalate crystals that can irritate the skin, mouth, tongue, and throat, resulting in throat swelling, breathing difficulties, burning pain, and stomach upset. The seeds may be chewed as a substitute for betel nut (Areca catechu). The leaf sheath fibre (‘kittul’) of the larger species is used to caulk boats, make rope, brushes and brooms, and the finer fibres for tinder and to make fishing lines or sewing thread. In the Philippines, the leaf sheath is sometimes split to weave baskets. Caryota stems yield an inferior timber sometimes used for construction purposes such as planking, rafters, roofing, partitioning, and fencing. It can also be used for flooring and for making spears.

Description: Fishtail palms (consisting of about 12 species) are small to medium-sized, solitary or sometimes clustered and unarmed. The trunk is generally smooth with elongated internodes, surrounded at first by persistent fibrous leaf bases and sheaths, then later becoming bare, exhibiting distinctly ringed leaf scars. The leaves are large, up to 4 m in length, the sheaths triangular; the leaflets very numerous and borne on secondary rachises, with uneven margin at the top and shaped like fish tails. The inflorescences are axillary, appearing first at the top of the stem and subsequent ones appear downwards, solitary, bisexual, supported by many bracts at the base of the single stalk, the individual branches drooping. The flowers are arranged in threes, usually one female between two males, the latter falls off early before the female ones open. The fruits are rounded 1- to 2-seeded, smooth, variously coloured, the covering fleshy, with

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Photo by M. David

Common names: BRN: handudor (Brunei Malay); IDN: nibung, sarai; MYS: rabuk, tukas; MMR: minbaw; PHL: pugahan, anibong (Tagalog); SGP: fishtail; THA: tao rang; VNM: dung-dinh, dung-dinh bac-son, dung-dinh canh-dinh, dungdinh ngua; ENG: fishtail palm

Habit (above); fruits (opposite page)

Distribution and habitat: Caryota comprises about 12 species occurring from Sri Lanka and India to Indo-China, southern China, Burma (Myanmar), Thailand, throughout the Malesian region towards the Solomon Islands and northern Australia. It is found in secondary and primary forests up to 2000 m altitude.

Photo by J. MacKinnon

EDIBLE

11

Poaceae

Dendrocalamus giganteus Wallich ex Munro internodes about 25 cm to 55 cm long with the lowermost being the shortest. The culm wall is about 2.5 cm thick, the nodes only slightly raised with the lower ones beset with short, densely-set aerial roots.

The branches arising from the midculm nodes are composed of one dominant central branch and a number of smaller branches on its sides and below it. The culm sheaths are early falling, large, widest on those on the lower nodes, with dark brown hairs on the back; the blade is triangular. Young shoots are purplish. Inflorescences and flowers are not commonly seen. It is propagated by clump division. If available, it can be propagated by seed. Propagation by culm and branch cuttings is possible, although difficult. “Giant bamboo” is also applied to Dendrocalamus asper (Schultes f.) Backer ex Heyne.

Common names: KHM: russey prey; IDN: bambu sembilang; LAO: po’; MYS: buloh betong, bambu sembilang (peninsular); MMR: wabo, ban; THA: phai-po (general), phai-pok (northern); VNM: tre manh tong to, may manh tong; ENG: giant bamboo

Handicraft

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Photo by M. David

Photo by A. Baja-Lapis

Description: As the name implies, this giant bamboo has a large culm, about 18 cm to 25 cm near the base and attaining 30 m tall. The culm is usually covered by a white waxy layer when young especially the lower culm base, becoming smooth, whitish to greyish green; the

Uses: One of the most significant uses of D. giganteus in Asia is as vegetable. It is a source of food in the wild having a creamy taste and tender to the bite. Even now, it remains a favourite wildfood which comes as ready-to-cook food in the markets. Another Dendrocalamus species, D. merrillianus, is widely used as a vegetable.

Bamboo is one of the oldest building materials used by mankind. The bamboo culm, or stem, has been made into an extended diversity of products ranging from domestic household products to industrial applications. Examples of bamboo products are food containers, skewers, chopsticks, handicrafts, toys, furniture, flooring, pulp and paper, boats, charcoal, musical instruments and weapons. In Asia, bamboo is quite common for

Photo by A. Baja-Lapis

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ne of the largest bamboo species that is still a source of wildfood.

Finely-chopped bamboo shoots

Dried bamboo shoots (above); habit (opposite page)

Photo by M. David

bridges, scaffolding and housing, but it is usually a temporary exterior structural material. In many overly populated regions of the tropics, certain bamboos supply the one suitable material that is sufficiently cheap and plentiful to meet the extensive need for economical housing. Bamboo shoots are an important source of food, and a delicacy in Asia. In addition to its more common applications, bamboo has other uses, from skyscraper scaffolding and phonograph needles to slide rules, skins of airplanes, and diesel fuels. Extractives from various parts of the plant have been used for hair and skin ointment, medicine for asthma, eyewash, potions for lovers and poison for rivals. Bamboo ashes are used to polish jewels and manufacture electrical batteries. It has been used in bicycles, dirigibles, windmills, scales, retaining walls, ropes, cables, and filament in the first light bulb. It provides numerous benefits and uses for people particularly to Asians.

Distribution and habitat: The origin of D. giganteus is not known precisely, but could possibly be in southern Myanmar (Tenasserim) and north-western Thailand. It is commonly planted in Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh and southern China. In Peninsular Malaysia, several old clumps of D. giganteus have been found growing scattered in the Penang Hills, but is not known whether this population is natural or a naturalised escape from cultivation.

D. giganteus has been introduced and planted in many botanical gardens e.g., in Indonesia, the Philippines, Indo-China, Madagascar.

D. giganteus grows naturally in humid tropical highlands, up to 1200 m altitude. It can however, be grown successfully in tropical lowlands on rich alluvial soils. In northern Thailand, it is found in natural forests with teak.

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Dryopteridaceae

Diplazium esculentum (Retz.) Sw.

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his species is the most commonly eaten of all the fern species in Southeast Asia.

Common names: LAO: koud pak; PHL: pako; THA: phak kut (general), kut kin (northern), kut khue (northern), kut-nam (Shan-

Mae Hong Son), kai-kwi-lu, pu-plae-do (Karen-Mae Hong-Son), phak kut khao (Chonburi), hasdam (peninsular); VNM: rau don, don rung, thai quyet; ENG: fiddlehead fern, vegetable fern

has an erect rhizome, which is scaly at the top. The leafstalks are up to 55 cm long, sparsely scaly at the base and becoming smooth towards the top. The expanded part of the leaf is bipinnate, about 90 cm long and 50 cm wide; the whole frond reached over 1 m long which, together with the others in cluster, arise from an erect rhizome. Veins are united with one another, the cluster of reproductive bodies are elongated and without an outer outgrowth covering. It can be propagated by spores, rhizomes, and division.

Description: Pako, the Philippines popular name for this fern,

Photo by M. David

Uses: This is the most important fern species as human food.

The tender unfolding fronds are eaten raw, as salad with various dressing, cooked as leafy vegetables or as ingredient of stew or even pickled. It is a good source of protein, Vitamin B, iron, calcium, and phosphorus.

Decoctions of rhizome and young leaves are used as expectorant. Used in tuberculosis, dyspepsia, stomachache due to diarrhoea or dysentery. Uprooted plant is pulverized and soaked in water for drinks.

Vegetables (above); young fern (opposite page); full-grown fern (inset)

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Distribution and habitat: Pako is widely distributed throughout the Philippines and Peninsular Malaysia. It occurs in India to Taiwan, throughout Malesia, to Fiji. It is very common in wet, open places and along streams at low altitudes.

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Photos by C. Reyes

Gnetaceae

Gnetum gnemon L.

Common names: BRN: bagu, belinjau; KHM: voë khlaèt; IDN: melinjo, belinjo, bagoe; MYS: meninjau, belinjau hyinbyin, tanyin-ywe; MMR: meninjau, belinjau; PHL: bago, banago, bago-sili, banango, kugitis, kuman, lamparan, labayong, magatungol, nabo; SGP: meninjau, belinjau; THA: miang, pi-sae (Malay - Narathiwat), khliane, rian kae (Na Khon Si thammerat), phak kariang (Chumphon), phak miang, miang (Phang nga); VNM: gam cay, bet, tau bep; ENG: melinjo, Spanish joint fir Description: This is a small, slender, dioecious tree attaining a height of about 10 m with greyish bark with sometimes distinctly raised and irregularly spaced features. The stem is usually straight but some individuals grow horizontally on the ground or climb.

Sometimes the erect stems are beset with many branches arising round the stem even near the base. The branches are thickened at the base. The leaves are simple, arranged opposite each other on a twig, the shape widest at midpoint of the blade with regularly rounded ends. The arrangement of the flowers in the stalk is solitary and arising between the leaf and the twig. The female flowers are arranged in a circle. The fruit is nutlike, somewhat eggshaped, almost velvety yellow, turning red to purple when ripe.

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

in Java. After removal of the rind, the seed is heated carefully, the husk is broken and the hot kernel is pounded into a flat cake.

The cakes are sun-dried, graded and packed for sale. A crisp snack (‘emping’) is prepared by puffing up the cakes in boiling oil.

A high quality fibre is extracted from the inner bark; it is used for the famous Sumba bowstring, and for fishing lines and nets because the fibre is durable in seawater. The wood is of no particular value, partly because additional cambia lead to an anomalous stem structure.

The seed is one per fruit, large and coarse. The white nut is enclosed in a thin shell, brittle and loose when dry, oblong and covered by brown-coloured seed coat. Propagation is done sexually by seed or asexually by air layering.

Uses: The young leaves, inflorescences, young and ripe fruits are cooked in vegetable dishes. G. gnemon var. tenerum is an important leafy vegetable in southern Thailand. The seed is the most important part; the fruit is nothing more than a seed covered by a tough husk (the seed coat) and a thin, edible rind. It can be eaten raw but is usually cooked or preserved as flat cakes from which crisps are made. This is an important home industry Photos by M. David

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he young leaves and inflorescence are edible and highly nutritious, commonly used as a vegetable in Southeast Asia.

Distribution and habitat: Throughout Southeast Asia (although it is not native of Sumatra and Java) and reaches north to Assam and east of Fiji, cultivation is limited to Southeast Asia.

Country of origin is Singapore. Also present in Fiji, Solomon Islands, Malesia (Sumba, Sulawesi), the Philippines (Ilocos Norte, Bataan, Quezon, Laguna, Batangas, Mindoro, Palawan, Sibuyan, Camarines, Panay, Samar, Leyte, Mindanao, Bucas Grande, Siargao), New Guinea, Malay Peninsula.

Found in rain forests up to 1,200 m altitude, commonly on riverbanks. For cultivation, areas with a distinct dry season are preferable to synchronise fruiting. Apparently, no specific requirements to soil, although moisture must be available during the dry season.

Habit (left); young leaves and fruits (opposite page)

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Convolvulaceae

Ipomoea aquatica Forssk.

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his paddy vegetable is so popular among Southeast Asians. Because of its high iron content, doctors recommend it to patients suffering from anaemia.

Description: Kangkong is an aquatic (another cultivar grows on dryland) vine like, trailing, edible perennial herb that grows up to 3 m long. The stem is smooth, cylindrical, hollow in the internodes, usually rooting at the lower nodes and exudes a milky sap when cut. The leaves are simple, alternate, and smooth; the blades entire, generally lanceolate with heart-shaped or arrow head-shaped base, narrowly pointed at the top and with slender stalks. The inflorescences are mostly axillary, one to many-flowered cymes; stalk present and short; bracts normally small, linear to triangular. The flowers are bisexual, regular, small to sometimes large; corolla funnel-shaped, white with pinkish colour at the inside base. The fruits are globose or ovoid capsule containing 4 to 10 seeds. The seeds are greyish and smooth; used as a propagation material and so the stems.

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Photos by M. David

Common names: BRN: kankong; KHM: tra kuön; IDN: kangkong, kandung; LAO: bôngz; MYS: kangkung, kankong; MMR: kazun-galay, kazun-ywet, ye-kazun; PHL: kangkong; SGP: kangkong; THA: puk boong, pak hung; VNM: rau muong; ENG: morning glory, convolvulus, water spinach (aquatic type)

Flower (above); habit (opposite page)

Uses: Whole plant is edible although the shoot tips and younger leaves are preferred. Shoot tips and leaves are eaten fresh or lightly cooked. Coarse stems and leaves are often used for animal feeding or fodder.

In Indonesia, people believe it has a calming effect and can be used as a sleeping tablet. The root of water spinach is believed to cure haemorrhoids. Because of its high iron content, doctors recommend it to patients suffering from anaemia. A decoction of the roots of I. aquatica is also used as an antidote against opium or arsenic poisoning or drinking of polluted water.

A decoction of the leaves is a remedy for cough. In India and the Philippines, the root of I. digitata is considered tonic, alterative,

aphrodisiac, demulcent, and is useful for fever and bronchitis.

The powdered root is given for diseases of spleen and liver. In China, the seeds are regarded as a diuretic, anthelminthic and are prescribed for dropsy, constipation and promote menstruation. In the West Indies, a weak leaf decoction is a remedy for asthma and rheumatism. It is also drunk daily in the last month of pregnancy to promote an easy delivery. The dried leaves are also applied to burns.

Ipomoea is also an important genus for providing ornamentals, normally for the large flowers, such as I. purpurea (L.) Roth, I. tricolor Cav., and I. digitata L. Some are also used as a hedge plant or green manure. In India, the leaves of I. aculeate var. mollissima are used as a substitute for soap to wash clothes.

I. pes-caprae is an excellent binder, and is used for checking erosion and drifting of sand. In Malawi, the long stems are made into ropes for hauling of fishnets, and in Gabon for skipping ropes. The pulped leaves are rubbed on fishing nets, to entice fish.

Distribution and habitat: Originated in tropical Asia (possibly India) but widely cultivated and naturalised in South and Southeast Asia, Africa, Asia, Australia, the Pacific islands, and South America.

Most Ipomoea grow under ever-wet and seasonal climatic conditions, although some prefer regions with pronounced dry monsoon, savanna, and grasslands.

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Arecaceae

Metroxylon sago Rottb.

Common names: BRN: rumbia; KHM: chraè saku; IDN: pohon sagu, pohon rumbia (general), kirai (Sundanese), lapia (Ambonese); LAO: sa:kh’u: tônz; MYS: rumbia (general), balau (Melanau, Sarawak); MMR: tha-gu-bin; PHL: lumbiya; SGP: sago; THA: sa-ku (Malay Peninsular), sakhu (peninsular); VNM: sagu; ENG: true sago palm, sago palm Description: Sago is a medium to tall palm tree about 7 m to 25 m high, flowering only once and then it dies, having only male and bisexual flowers in the same tree, with suckers around the base. It has heavy aerial and spongy roots but with tough central vascular strand and penetrate only about a meter deep into the soil. Trunk is about 30 cm to 60 cm in diameter at breast height, the lower portion with distinct rings of leaf scar and the upper portion covered with late falling leaf sheaths.

Leaves reach from 18 in to 24 in robust trunks, simply pinnate, about 5 m to 7 m long; the stalks very robust, expanding at the base clasping the trunk, with or without nasty flattish long thorns arranged in appressed or

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

outward line formation. Inflorescences are in terminal panicles, up to about 5 m to 7 m high and as wide. Flowers are arranged in pairs of one male and one perfect flower. Fruits are depressed, egg-shaped drupe, covered with vertical rows of 18 to 19 scales which are green-yellow turning straw-coloured when ripe. Seeds are subglobose, about 3 cm in diameter with dark-brown seed covering. It is propagated vegetatively through its suckers.

Uses: The starch in the trunk is a staple food. Usually, wet starch is boiled, fried or roasted, alone or mixed with other foodstuffs, resulting in products of different keeping quality. In Indonesia and Malaysia, the starch is used industrially in the manufacture of cakes and cookies, noodles and kerupuk (crisps) and for custard powders.

Sago is made by felling the tree just before it flowers and extracting the stored starch from amongst its fibrous matrix; by shaking in running water, the individual starch grains can be agglutinated into the familiar sago pearls. An average trunk yields 114 kg to 295 kg, and exceptional ones up to 545 kg.

Nonfood uses include sizing pastes for paper and textiles, and extender in adhesive Photos by M. David

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ago is nutritive and demulcent … good element for diet drinks.

Young sago (left); distinct thorn formation (opposite page)

for plywood. It is a very suitable raw material for further industrial processing, e.g., into high-fructose syrup and ethanol.

The palm has many secondary uses. Whole young trunks, pith, and pith refuse are given to animals. The ‘bark’ of the trunk is used as timber or as fuel. Walls, ceilings, and fences can be constructed from the petioles (‘gaba-gaba’); the fibrous outer layer of the petioles is used for cordage and to weave mats. The leaflets produce one of the best ataps (roof thatch) available, the main use of the palm in West Java. Young leaflets are made into baskets for the transport and storage of fresh (wet) starch. The growing point of the palm with its surrounding tissues may be eaten raw or cooked (palm cabbage).

Distribution and habitat: The sago palm probably originates from New Guinea and the Moluccas but has only recently been dispersed for research beyond Southeast Asia and the nearby Pacific Islands. In Indonesia, the palm is now found in parts of Sulawesi, Kalimantan, Sumatra and West Java, as well as on many smaller islands with a non-seasonal climate. In Malaysia, the palm grows in Sabah, Sarawak and on the Peninsula. Some are found in Brunei and in the Philippines (Leyte, Mindanao).

There are large areas of sago palm in Papua New Guinea. There is also a small area in southern Thailand. Sago palm is found at the farthest, easternmost in the Solomon Islands and probably the Santa Cruz Islands.

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Nymphaeaceae

Common names: BRN: teratai; KHM: chhuk; IDN: terate, seroja, padma; MYS: seroja; padema, teratai; MMR: padonma-kya; PHL: baino (Tagalog), sukan (Bikol), sukaw (Ilocano); LAO: bwà; SGP: lotus; THA: chok (Khmer-Buri Ram), bua, bua luang (general), satta bongkot, sattabut, ubon (central); VNM: sen, hoa sen; ENG: lotus, sacred lotus, Indian lotus Description: The lotus plant is an aquatic perennial herb whose parts are smooth but covered with a whitish to greyish powdery coating and attaining only a meter or two in height. It usually grows in muddy soil and when it is cut, it exudes a milky sap. The rhizomes are creeping and jointed up to 10 m long. The interjoints are oblongish or ellipsoidal in shape, up to 30 cm long and 10 cm in diameter. The leaves are attached to its middle surface to the stalks that arise singly from inbetween the joints of the rhizomes. The leafstalks are cylindrical in cross-section, covered outside with short fleshy prickles, the inside with numerous air canals.

The leaf blades are shallowly cup-shaped or depressed above, up to almost a meter in diameter. The inflorescence is a solitary flower that arises from the interjoint from where the leafstalk is also attached, projecting above the water higher or

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Photo by M. David

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eeds, leaves, petioles, rhizomes and young roots are edible.

Photo by J. MacKinnon

Nelumbo nucifera Gaertner the same level with the leaves, either erect or nodding and about up to fourth of a meter in diameter. The seeds are divided halfway into two. Pieces of rhizomes are usually used as planting material and planted with the buds just above the mud under about 1 m of water. Lotus seed will also easily produces plants, but it takes more time to produce rhizomes of marketable size.

From seed, seedlings are raised in nursery beds and planted out after about 2 months. Lotus fruits (seeds) are said to remain viable for more than a century.

Uses: The starchy rhizomes are eaten raw or cooked and are marketed fresh, dried, canned, as flour, pickled or preserved as sweetmeats. These are long sausage-shaped with hollow portions and are connected like sausages on a string. Unripe seeds are eaten fresh as nuts. Ripe seeds are eaten raw, boiled or roasted, usually with the bitter embryo removed. Before being sold in dried form, the seed coat and embryo are removed. It is a popular ingredient in local desserts like “cheng teng”. The young rhizome shoots and unexpanded leaves are eaten boiled as a vegetable, and the very young leaves can be eaten raw.

In traditional medicine, lotus has many applications. The Chinese use the rhizomes to treat diarrhoea and dysentery, while the Cambodians use them to make a tea for menorFlower (top left); fruit (left); habit (opposite page)

Photo by J. MacKinnon

rhagia. Embryos are used in China for reducing fever, for treating cholera, haemoptysis, spermatorrhoea and as a tonic; in Malaysia they are pounded and administered to treat syphilis; the Chinese use them in cosmetic applications; in India they are used against fever and dysentery; in Cambodia and the Philippines against dysentery. The Chinese apply the stamens as astringent, diuretic, and in cosmetics; in India they are applied as astringent and for cooling, and in Indo-China for flavouring tea. In Indonesia and India, the slimy juice from the petioles and peduncles is used to treat diarrhoea. The leaves make convenient wrappers, especially for food to be cooked. In India, the fibres in the petioles are made into wicks for religious lamps and a perfume is extracted from the flowers.

Besides its many uses, N. nucifera is perhaps most important as an ornamental for the beauty of its flowers and fruits, the latter also in dried form. In India, lotus is the ‘national flower’.

It is the symbol of divineness, purity, beauty, kind-heartedness, fragrance, coolness, fertility, prosperity, and is given due prominence by poets, artists, sculptors, architects, and craftsmen.

Distribution and habitat: N. nucifera originates from continental Asia (possibly India), but is now widely distributed (wild or cultivated) from northeastern Africa to north-eastern Australia including Southeast Asia, China, and Japan.

The natural habitat for lotus is freshwater bodies in tropical and subtropical Asia. Lotus grows in old mining pools, natural or man-made lakes, canals and ponds. It occurs from sea level up to 1800 m altitude.

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Solanaceae

Solanum melongena L.

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he plant can be easily raised at the backyards of Asian homes. The fruit may be eaten in several cooking preparations such as frying, boiling, steaming or broiling. It is best eaten with fish sauce.

Description: Annual or perennial, erect or ascending, unarmed or spiny herbs, shrubs or rarely small trees, with simple, branched, stellate or glandular hairs. Leaves alternate or rarely subopposite, simple and entire to lobed, pinnatisect or imparipinnate, petiolate, exstipulate. Inflorescence a terminal cyme but usually appearing lateral by growth of a lateral bud and extra-axillary cyme, appearing racemose, umbellate or paniculate or rarely reduced to a solitary flower. Flowers regular, bisexual or rarely andromonoecious; calyx campanulate, rotate or copular; 4- to 10-lobed, white, violet, purple or blue; stamens (4 to 5), inserted on the corolla throat, alternating with

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emergent, ovate to linear-lanceolate; first leaves usually entire.

Species of this genus can be propagated by seed, shoot cuttings, and division of rooted shoots.

Uses: S. melongena belongs to a genus which includes a number of human food crops including potato (S. tuberosum L.). Solanum shows insecticidal and fungicidal properties.

Leaves and stems of many species are often cooked or steamed and eaten as vegetable. Fruit is edible.

Medicinal uses include: cure for digestive, intestinal and skin problems. Many species are also employed to treat fever, malaria, rheumatism, and various diseases of the respiratory and urinary tract. Some are stimulants, others sedative.

Photo by J. MacKinnon

Common names: BRN: terung; IDN: terung; MMR: khayan, khayan-sat, litnga-shaba, mak-hku, shaba, ta-gau; PHL: talong; SGP: aubergine, eggplant, brinjal; VNM: ca chua, khoai, tay; ENG: eggplant

corolla lobes, anthers often converging but not fused into a single part, opening by terminal pores or slits; ovary superior, 2 to 4 locular with many ovules in each cell, style simple, stigma capitate or bifid. Fruit usually globose berry, with a persistent and sometimes enlarged calyx, few to many-seeded. Seeds orbicular to subreniform, compressed, often minutely pitted or reticulate. Seedling with epigeal germination; cotyledons

Flowers of Solanum sp (above); habit of Solanum sp (opposite page); fruit of Solanum sp (inset)

ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Distribution and habitat: Solanum is a very large genus of about 1500 species. The principal centre of diversity is located in Central and South America, with secondary centres in Africa and Australia. Peninsular Malaysia has about 15 species; Java and the Philippines about 25 species each. It is found abundantly in plains not in forests.

Photo by J. MacKinnon

EDIBLE Photo by A. Baja-Lapis

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Leguminosae: Caesalpiniodeae

Tamarindus indicus L.

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he sweetness or sourness of the tamarind fruits depends on the cultivars but whatever its taste may be, sweet or sour, Southeast Asians still love eating it.

Description: Tamarind is a large evergreen tree, up to 30 m tall, the bole is usually short but may reach up to 5 m to the first big branch with a diameter reaching 2 m and a densely- foliaged, wide-spreading rounded crown. The outside bark is rather rough, fissured and grayish-brown. The leaves are compound, alternate, having stipules and stalks, stalks up to 1.5 cm long and leaving a distinct scar after falling, leaflets are from 8 to 16 pairs, each narrowly oblong, small, about one to three cm by 1.5 cm., entire oblique or rounded at the base, rounded to slightly emarginated at the top.

Inflorescences area rather lux or loosely branched lateral and terminal racemes, up to 13 cm long, flowers are

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constriction on the pod between the seeds, outside portion of pod brittle especially when ripe, greyish or more usually scurfy brown with some strong fibrous strands underneath; the mesocarp thick-synergy, blackish-brown, usually sour in taste, sometimes sweet; endocarp thin, leathery. Seed numbers from 8 to 10, irregularly-shaped, flattened rhomboid, with distinct areola or both sides of the flat surfaces, very hard, brown. Tamarind is generally propagated by seed, but it also can be started from cuttings.

The origin of tamarind is not known but it is believed to be indigenous in the drier savannas of tropical Africa but has long ago been naturalised in tropical Asia. Plantations have been established in India and it is economically important in Southeast Asia.

Photo by M. David

Common name: KHM: ampul, ampil, khou me; IDN: asam, asam jawa, tambaring; LAO: khaam, makkham MMR: magyee, majee-pen; MYS: asam jawa; PHL: sampalok (Tagalog), kalamagi (Bisaya), salomagi (Ilokano); SGP: tamarind; THA: makham; VNM: metrai me; ENG: tamarind, Indian tamarind

fragrant, about 3 cm long with 4 unequal sepals; the petals fine, the posterior and lateral ones large and showy, cream coloured with red-brown veins, the two anterior ones much reduced, linear and white; stamens are three, pistil 1, up to 18 ovules. The fruit is cylindrical, straight or curved, pod not opening and with rounded ends or the top with short terminal structure, about 15 cm x 4 cm long, with up to 10 seeds/pod usually indicated by

Habit (above); fruits (opposite page)

ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Uses: Tamarinds are widely cultivated and utilised in Southeast Asia. The almost all parts of the tree are used for food preparation, medicines, and other purposes.

The fruit pulp is rich in tartaric and citric acids, high amount of vitamin C and sugar.

The green fruits and flowers may be used for souring soupy dishes (“sinigang” in the Philippines) of fish and meat. Tamarind seeds are also edible after soaking in water and boiling to make into cake and bread. “Malasebo” cultivars of the Philippines are

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Photo by J. MacKinnon

preferred eaten fresh yet not too ripe. Peeled fruit is dipped in salt. Sweet tamarind cultivars are best for making candies needing little of sugar or nothing at all like “makahm wahn” of Thailand and Philippines’ “Manila Sweet”. The ripe fruit of the sweet type is usually eaten fresh whereas the fruits of sour types are made into juice, jam, syrup and candy.

Tamarind candies may include or not the seeds (pure pulp).

Hard pods are peeled off and pulps with seeds are collected and formed ball-like. Thais and Filipinos for example make candies in different forms and preparations with solely pulp or seeds, out of sweet ripe tamarind cultivars and sold in local markets and abroad. Carbonated drinks are available in countries like Mexico and Guatemala. Pulp of tamarind is also available in the markets, ready for making preferred confectionaries.

Even unripe fruits are used such as readied powder of tamarind to flavour soup of fish or meat. But the fresh unripe fruit, flowers and young leaves are still the best choice by households in places wherever readily available— making the soup thick and natural to the taste. The fully-grown unripe fruits are roasted until they burst and hard skin peels off. The exposed pulp is dipped to preferred flavour like salt and fish sauce, and eaten. Indians eat the young flowers, leaves and

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

seedlings of tamarind as vegetable and as curries. Goat, cattle and silkworms eat also these parts. The flowers are good source of honey in India. Tamarind seeds can also be eaten in the form of flour or starch for making bread and cake, roasted or boiled. Roasted seeds may be used as coffee substitute.

Medicinally, tamarind bark can be made to astringent and tonic and its ashes may be given internally as a digestive.

Incorporated into lotions or poultices, the bark may be used to relieve sores, ulcers, boils and rashes. It may also be employed as a decoction against asthma and amenorrhea and as a febrifuge. Young leaves may be used in fomentation for rheumatism, applied to sores and wound or administers as poultice for inflammation of joints to reduce swelling and relieve pain. A sweetened decoction of leaves is good against cough and fever. Filtered hot juice of young leaves and a poultice of the flowers are used for conjunctivitis. A leaf decoction are used as dewormer among children and useful for jaundice. The pulp may be used as an acid refrigerant, a mild laxative and also to treat scurvy. Powdered seeds may be given to cure dysentery and diarrhoea.

Aside from these uses, the ink can be obtained from burning the bark in Java. The Hindus Kamaras used the starch in doll painting and in time of famine, the seeds are

used as food by aboriginal tribes. In Mexico, the wood is found to be valuable for boiling purposes and furnished excellent charcoal for the manufacture of gunpowder. Wood is also strong and durable and ideal in making furniture, turnery, tool handles, toys, mortars and chopping blocks.

Leaves are used in dyeing. Tamarind seeds produce oil like linseed oil, used in making paint and varnish. Meanwhile, it is also an attractive ornamental plant, as the crown can be trimmed to desired shapes. Hence, it often is planted in public parks and as an avenue tree in tropical cities.

Distribution and habitat: The species was naturalised in tropical Asia. Its origin is not known but it is believed that this species is indigenous to tropical Africa. It is now cultivated in all tropical countries and became economically important all over Southeast Asia. In other areas like India, it is being cultivated in large plantations. It is widely adaptable to any weather and environmental conditions, especially the old trees. It grows in sandy to clay soil and in altitudes of up to 1000 m to 1500 m asl. It can prolong even during dry season and strong winds due to its extensive root system. In areas with much rains, tamarinds do not flower and fruit development is not completed.

Fibres and Barks Fibres and Barks

Poaceae

Bambusa vulgaris Schrader ex Wendland

Common names: BRN: buloh kuning; KHM: rüssèi kaèw; IDN: bamboo kuning (yellow culms), bamboo ampel (green culms), domar (Ambonese); LAO: s’a:ng kh’am’; MYS: buloh minyak, buloh kuning (Peninsular), tamelang (Sabah); MMR: shwe-wa; PHL: kauayan-kiling (Tagalog), kabaloan (Bikol), butong (Bisaya); THA: chan kham, phai chin, phai tuang, phai luang (Bangkok), phai lueang (northern), ri-sai (Khmer), rai yai (Loei), sang kham (northern); VNM: tre mo, tre bung phat; ENG: common bamboo Description: The bunch of stems (culms) are growing more or less open or not closely grouped together, reaching a height of 10 m to 20 m and 4 cm to 10 cm in diameter at breast height.

Culms are divided into thickened part of a segmented stem (nodes) and part between nodes (internode) which is usually hollow. Nodes bear aerial roots from base of stem to usually up to third node, up to 6.5 cm long. The internodes are bluish green, shiny or yellow with green stripes of various widths, slightly

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

nodes have one dominant primary branch, primary and tertiary branches nearly solid. Leaves remain fresh after cutting, 5 to 11 a branch, narrow to narrowly tapering at each end (linearlanceolate), up to 33 cm long x 2 cm to 6.5 cm wide, underneath surface minutely hairy (pubescent); stalk of leaves (petiole) short; earlike projections (auricles) reduced to minute lobes; thin apical extension of the sheath (ligule) 1 mm to 2 mm high, entire or minutely tooth-like (dentate), smooth (glabrous). Flowers and fruits have not been seen.

depressed or grooved at the branch side, 20 cm to 45 cm long, to 10 cm in diameter, culm wall about 2 cm thick. Culm sheaths are early falling (caducous), leathery, densely covered with dark brown hairs outside from the base to the top, smooth and glossy inside, 15 cm to 20 cm long, base 28 cm wide; sheath auricles (ear-shaped), with few brownish bristles of up to 8 mm long; sheath ligule narrow, 1 mm to 3 mm high; sheath blade persistent, narrowly triangular, outside smooth (glabrous), inside with dark brown to black hairs, lower half of the blade margin with hairs along the margin (cilia). Branches arising from the

Photo by A. Baja-Lapis

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f all bamboo species, Bambusa vulgaris is the most widely used, distributed and recognized in Southeast Asia. Generally, bamboo remains incomparable with any other species worldwide in terms of beauty, lightweight, vitality, versatility, and strength.

Uses: Uses of bamboo are countless. For the Southeast Asians, bamboo is significantly useful as a material for building bridges, raft, posts, ladder, scaffolding, plybamboo, indoor panel, huts, walling, thatching, roofing, flooring, fence; all types and kinds of handicrafts from furniture, accessories, umbrella, basket, utensil, containers, toys, tools, festivities, musical instruments, wind chimes to paper, early writing material (Filipino writing in ancient Indic script), fuel, cooking pot, wrapper, vegetable, reforestation, farm irrigation, fishing rod, hunting, ornamental, and medicine.

The following discussion is focused on the remarkable usefulness of bamboo to Southeast Asians: Bambusa species, particularly B. vulgaris and B. blumeana were used in 1950 during an experimental low-cost covering for wings and fuselage of light airplanes by the Institute of Science and Technology in the Philippines. Inner and outermost parts of

Distribution and habitat: Bambusa vulgaris is found growing pantropically along riverbanks, from low elevations up to 1200 m altitude. It is the most commonly encountered cultivated bamboo throughout Southeast Asia.

Bamboo shoots (opposite page); rainmaker (above); habit of mature bamboos (right); habit of bamboo shoot (inset)

Photos by M. David

culm wall were discarded to make a “sawali”– a woven bamboo splits used for walling. Bamboo then was recommended for use of waterplanes.

Bamboo is extensively used as aqueducts to irrigate farmlands in Sarawak, Indonesia (Kovac Damir).

Culms are used as pipes to transport water from spring to households or farmlands.

Bigger culms with thicker width are used as pegs to raise the bamboo pipes.

An improvised “water wheel” can be constructed out of bamboo species like Dendrocalamus and Gigantochloa. The bamboo water wheel serves as scooping machinery from a lower ground to a higher plantation. Practically, every part of the water wheel is made of bamboo except for the axel, which is made out of a palm.

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Arecaceae

Calamus L.

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he usefulness of the Calamus species is extensively known in Southeast Asia. From food to furniture, it has a deep niche in Asian cuisine and crafts.

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Description: Calamus is one of the genera of climbing palms generally called rattans, which belongs to the Calamoid line characterised by distinctive scaly fruits. This group of rattans is solitary or in clusters. The stem, which is called cane of commerce, when still young is covered with leaf sheaths beset with prickly and rigid long spines. When old, the leaf sheaths naturally rot exposing the cane with distinct nodes and internodes. The stem extends for a number of meters climbing up the trees. This is the one that is being harvested. The leaf sheaths are heavily covered with spines where sterile inflorescence called flagellum may or may not be present. The flagellum acts as a climbing organ developed from a modified inflorescence, borne on a leaf sheath. In the absence of the flagellum, it is replaced by cirrus (i.e., a climbing

Fruits

ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Photo by M. David

Common names: BRN: rotan; LAO: wai; MMR: kyein, danon, taung-kyein, thaing-kyein, kyein-ni, yamata-kyein, khabaung-kyein, kyein-bok, mya-sein-kyein, kyein-byu, kyein-kha; PHL: uai, sika, kumaboi, litoko, palasan, tandulang gubat; SGP: rattan; THA: wai; VNM: may, may bon ngon, may may lat, may song; ENG: climbing palm

organ developed from the extension of the leaf tip) at the top of the leaf. Very rarely that both flagellum and cirrus are present or absent in a species. A marked swelling on a leaf sheath just below the stalk called a knee, is always present. Sometimes, beyond the base of the petiole, an extension of the leaf sheath called ocrea is developed. The inflorescence has a long flagellum at the tip. Male flowers are cup-shaped, smaller than the female flower, both with 3 petals. Fruit shape is irregular, covered with reflexed scales and beneath is the fleshy pericarp. Seeds are very hard and difficult to germinate. It can be propagated vegetatively by using seeds, suckers, rhizomes, and tissue culture.

Uses: Rattan is sought-after because of the stem. Cane, its byproduct, is the major material in making a variety of furniture and handicrafts. Rural folks have been using the cane to make animal traps, cages, walking sticks, tool handles, mats, baskets, and racquets. It is also combined with other material like bamboo to produce new designs and by-products of crafts. It is also used in binding posts and pegs for houses, steps for bridges, poles for fences, and katig (balance beams) for boats.

The most commonly used species is C. merrillii because of its versatility in making small accessories and finely woven bags and baskets. C. poilanei and C. manan are preferred for making framed furniture. C. gracilis, C. caesius and C. soiltarius are generally used for accoutrements to embellish furniture or as materials for furnishings.

Two processing techniques for mature raw stems are simply sun-drying and cooking/treating with minerals. Both take weeks to obtain desired the desired result in fashioning these out into crafts. The use of sulphur in treating the canes provides uniform colours. Determining first the desired size of cane is important to reduce wastage before packing or further manufacturing. Staining and colouring are done to complete finishing.

For thatching purposes, mature leaflets are woven. Young leaves, on the other hand, are used to wrap cigarettes. Young shoots and fruits of some species are eaten elsewhere in

Photo by M. David

Southeast Asia. Birds and mammals are attracted to the fleshy outer covering of fruits and consume it. C. rhabdocladus has sweet taste while the rest, bitter. Fruits are also used medicinally; otherwise, as dye and varnish. In Lao PDR, C. acanthophyllus has been used to treat malaria and in childbirth.

Photo by M. David

Photo by A. Baja-Lapis

Habit (above); woven split rattan make into a jar (below left); basket (below right)

Distribution and habitat: Calamus, with about 370 species, widely distributed from Africa, India, Myanmar, and southern China throughout Malesia, to northern Australia, and Fiji.

Malesia has the highest diversity of genus and species.

Jansen and Westphal (1994) suggested that certain species have precise climatic requirements. In the wild, rattans are found growing in different types of forest, soil, and rock. They are also found under varying degrees of temperature, light, and altitude.

At the extreme north of the range of rattans, it is possible that they may occasionally be subjected to temperatures below 0 o C. In altitudinal range, they occur from sea level up to 3000 m, the highest altitude record being held by Calamus gibbsianus found at Mt Kinabalu, Sabah. There are differences in the rattan flora at different altitudes.

Rattan growing in primary forest (C. manan and C. ornatus), require light gaps for further growth and development.

There are species needing adequate light to enhance growth (C. caecius, C. scipionum, C. manan C. trachycoleus, C. tumidus and other commercial species). Species that cannot stand full sunlight throughout the day are C. scipionum, C. caesius, and C. manan.

The condition is true to all climbing rattan species.

FIBRES AND BARKS

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Rhizophoraceae

Rhizophora L.

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hizophora are valued mangrove species as sources of tannin used by Southeast Asians in tanning leather and rope.

Common names: BRN: bakau; IDN: bakau hitam; KHM: kongkang; MYS: bakau hitam; MMR: payon-apo, pyu, baingdaung, byu-chidauk, payon-ama; PHL: bakauan; SGP: bakau; VNM: duoc, dung, duoc doi, duoc nhon, duoc xanh; ENG: mangrove species

slender ones; calyx and petals are 4-lobed. Fruits are egg-shaped, rather rough to the touch, brown and hanging; the seeds germinate while still in the fruit clinging to the twig and the elongated rudimentary root or radicle which may reach over 30 cm long, green surface with some corky protrusions, drops down the mud and grows as a new plant.

Photo by M. David

Uses: Among the mangrove species, Rhizophora has been the major source of tannin obtained from the stem barks used for tanning leather and dyeing of ropes and nets, usually in fishing industry. Tannin from Rhizophora is characterized by gradual Description: Rhizophora (which means “root bearer” in Greek, in changing from light to dark shades of dark brown or black wherein allusion to stilt roots they possess) are composed of small to largecontent varies per species from 8% to 40%. Compared with other sized mangrove trees, growing to 30 m tall and 70 cm diameter at mangrove species-producing tannin, the barks breast height, and possessing stilt roots. When of Rhizophora species, particularly of R. young, the trees develop branches just above the mucronata, have the highest tannin content. stilt roots but in mature trees in protected Tannin is removed by stripping the bark of mangroves, the clear bole may reach to over 10 the standing or felled tree, which is later m high to the first branch. The branches are not used for charcoal production— another major distinctly sympodial. The trunks are erect, use of mangrove species. By a large cylindrical; bark greyish and fissured. The leaves measure, the deterioration of the mangrove are broadly elliptic to oblong, with a sharp forest is due to this practise. It is important terminal point top, the base cuneate; stipules that the tannin obtained be kept from drying; present. Inflorescences are axillary, racemose, 2otherwise it will be useless. With its the lime flowered or 2 to 3 times forked having 3 to 7 Seedling on tree (above); habit (opposite page) and calcium carbonate chemical properties, flowers. The flowers are without stalks or with

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

tannin Is also used in making fertilizer. It could also be used as adhesives for manufacturing plywood and particleboard.

Rhizophora also produces quality charcoal and firewood due to its high calorific value chiefly why plantations have been established. Stem and roots (stilt and prop) are used for charcoal making. The wood easily splits, which is a good characteristic for firewood but not really for heavy construction purpose as it also shrinks. Wood is used for scaffolding, foundation, salt-water piling, beams, joists, posts, furniture, flooring, mine timber, fish traps and a lot more.

Other uses of Rhizophora species are the following: bark of prop roots is used as mosquito repellent and to treat diabetes and haematuria (presence of blood cells in urine); sap is used in making black dye for tapa cloth (practised by East Africans and Polynesians); roots serve as bow-nets in catching crabs and fishes; fruit, particularly of R. mucronata, is edible.

Distribution and habitat: The species is found in Southeast Asia, East Africa through coasts of the Indian Ocean to China, Australia, Melanesia, Micronesia (tropics and subtropics to about 28° in both the northern and southern hemispheres). It thrives in deep, soft estuaries normally flooded by tides (R. apiculata), along banks of tidal stream (R. mucronata), sandy shore and coral terraces on the seashore side of the mangrove forests (R. stylosa).

FIBRES AND BARKS

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Photo by J. MacKinnon

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Fruits Fruits

Moraceae

Artocarpus heterophyllus Lamk

A

stately tropical fruit tree, originally from Southeast Asia, recognized as the tree bearing the largest fruit in the world.

Common names: BRN: nangka; KHM: khnor; LAO: mak mi, may mi; MYS: jak-fruit, jak, jaca; PHL: nangka, langka; SGP: jackfruit; THA: khanun (general), kha-nu (Chong-Chanthaburi), kha-noe (Khmer), si-khue, pa-noi (Karen-Mae Hong Son), na-yuaisa (Karen-Kanchanaburi), na-ko (Malay-Pattani), neu (ChaobonNakhon Ratchasima), manun (northern, peninsular), lang (ShanNorthern), mak mi (northeastern), mak lang (Shan-Mae Hong Son); VNM: mit; ENG: jackfruit Description: This is a fruit tree that bears the largest fruit in the world. It has a short trunk with two or more stout branches from where the flowers and fruits usually are borne in contrast to most plants, which bear flowers/fruits in young twigs. The bark is rather rough to somewhat flaky. The twigs are stout and have distinctly raised stipular scars. The leaves are simple, entire, shortly elliptic, usually broadcast at the middle and sometimes leaves with pair of lobes occur. The inflorescences are rather few

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

coming out from short leafy shoots arising usually from the trunk and older branches. The male inflorescences are narrowly ellipsoid composing fertile and sterile flowers, which die after the pollen are shed off; the female inflorescences are borne simple or in pairs, strategically situated below the male ones, rounded to oblong and grow increasingly as it matures. The collective fruit of an entire inflorescence grows increasingly sometimes to a meter by half a meter in size. Seeds are numerous which can be eaten boiled or roasted. Propagation is by seeds, cutting-grown plants and grafted seedlings.

Uses: This fruit is rich in calcium, potassium, iron, vitamins A, C, and B. It can be baked, fried, boiled, ingredient in soups and salads, or simply eaten fresh-but accordingly, best enjoyed after refrigeration for 5 days. This fruit has been a favourite as

Fruits Photos by M. David

flavouring of ice cream, candies, chutney, jam, jelly, paste, “leather” or papad, or canned in syrup, nectar/ concentrate/ powder, as chips, as potent liquor and flavouring of beverages.

Meanwhile, the unripe fruits are cooked as vegetable and canned in brine or with curry; tender young fruits pickled with or without spices. The seeds, which are kept aside are boiled or roasted and eaten or can also be boiled and preserved in syrup like chestnuts, canned in brine or in curry, and like baked beans, in tomato sauce; roasted, dried seeds as flour which is blended with wheat flour for baking. Young leaves serve as feeds for cattle and other livestock; as food wrappers and plates; medicinally, the ash of jackfruit leaves, burned with corn and coconut shells, with coconut oil to heal ulcers. Medicinally, jackfruit pulp and seeds as tonic, cooling and nutritious; when roasted as aphrodisiac; seed starch to relieve biliousness. Roots of old trees are priced for carving and picture framing while the root can be used against skin diseases and asthma; as extract are taken for fever and diarrhoea. Jackwood is ideal timber, for furniture, construction, turnery, masts, oars, implements, brush backs and musical instruments; sawdust of jackwood or chips of the heartwood produce yellow dye for silk and the cotton robes; medicinally, the wood has a sedative property. Tannin in the bark made into cordage or cloth; medicinally, the bark made to poultices. Dried branches produce fire by friction in religious ceremonies. The latex serves as birdlime; heated latex as a

Habit (left); young fruits (above)

household cement for mending chinaware and earthenware, and to caulk boats and holes in buckets; medicinally, the dried latex has a compound with androgenic action and mixed with vinegar, the latex promotes healing of abscesses, snakebite and glandular swellings.

Distribution and habitat: Originated in India and is popular in Southeast Asia, commonly cultivated in gardens in humid tropical areas; also found in the East Indies, in central and eastern Africa, Brazil and Surinam. This species favours well-drained, frost-free location that is sunny and warm. It is also shade tolerant and can grow as second canopy under coconut or other ball light trees.

FRUITS

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Oxalidaceae

Averrhoa bilimbi L.

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he pickle tree bears fruits all year round providing continuous supply of fresh, sourish relish for fish preparations and dishes.

Common names: BRN: belimbing pucong, belimbing buluh (Brunei Malay); IDN: belimbing besu, balimbing, blimbing, blimbing wuluh, belimbing buluk; KHM: tralong tong; MYS: belimbing asam, belimbing buloh, b’ling, billing-billing: PHL: kalamias, kamias (Tagalog); SGP: belimbing; THA: taling pling (general), bli-ming (Malay-Narathiwat), ling pliag (peninsular); VNM: khe tau; ENG: pickle fruits, cucumber tree Description: Belimbing or its derived common names in the Indo-Malesian region, is a small tree attaining a height of only about 6 m to 9 m tall, developing about 2 to 4 main branches from where a number of usually ascending smaller branchlets arise without definite crown form. The trunk is generally short with rather rough, cracked greyish to dark brown colour bark.

The leaves are compound, imparipinnate, alternately arranged in five ranks. When young, all parts are finely short and soft hairy; the leaflets are up to 20 pairs, arranged in mixed opposite, sub-opposite and alternate manner in the rachis, the leaflets nearest the stalk are the smallest and usually ovate, the ones towards the top gradually increasing in size and lanceolate, short-stalked, the base usually inequilateral, the top

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

acute in leaflets near the stalk and long acuminate in those towards the apex. The flowers are usually in panicles arising from the stem, sometimes axillary; flower parts on fives, the petals much longer than the sepals, red purple; style lengths in short, medium and long; the short stamens are fertile. The fruits are a large berry, obovoid to ellipsoid in shape, fiveridged or shallowly five-ridged, 5 cm to 10 cm long, crisp when unripe turning bright-green to yellowish-green, ivory or nearly white when ripe, soft and tender, and the flesh green, jellylike, juicy and has extremely acid taste. Seeds few, about 6 to 7, flattened, disc-like, 6 mm, smooth and brown in colour.

Propagated by seeds, grafting and marcotting.

Uses: This tree will catch your attention, as the whole of its body is decorated with its greenish cucumber-like fruits during fruiting stage. The fruits are made into chutneys, a jam or an acid jelly; half-ripe fruits salted, set out in the sun, and pickled in brine; fruits are pricked all over using needles, spread out in a bilao (huge plate-like container made of thin strips of thinned, dried bamboo) for drying, then it is either kept them for long use as flavourings or boiled with brown sugar to make prunes; the juice is made into cooling beverages; medicinally, paste of pickled belimbing applied to body for recovery after a fever, for coughs, beri-beri and biliousness, inflammation and to stop rectal bleeding and alleviate internal hemorrhoids, clean the

blade of a kris (dagger), as mordants in the preparation of an orange dye for silk fabrics; juice, for bleaching stains from the hands and rust from white cloth, and also tarnish from brass.

Meanwhile, the leaves are used as pastes or poultices on itches, swellings of mumps, rheumatism, and skin eruptions: for bites of poisonous creatures; against venereal disease; leaf infusion remedy for coughs and as a tonic; leaf decoction for relieve rectal inflammation. Flower infusion is a remedy for coughs and thrush. The wood is white, even-grained, soft yet tough.

Distribution and habitat: Native to the Moluccas (Indonesia) and cultivated in areas in the Tropics, Sri Lanka, and Myanmar (Burma). Cultivated and semiwild in the Philippines.

It is very common in Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore; frequent in gardens across the plains of India, and has run wild in all the warmest areas of that country. Also in India, Zanzibar, and Queensland, Island of Timor to Jamaica, Cuba, and Puerto Rico, Trinidad and the lowlands of Central America, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Surinam, Guyana and Brazil, in northern Argentina, Hawaii and occasionally in southern Florida. Requires full sun to light shade with regular water, rich and moist soil, should be well drained.

Fruits (opposite page); habit (inset)

Photo by M. David

FRUITS

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Photo by J. MacKinnon

Rutaceae

Citrus maxima (Burm.) Merr.

Common names: BRN: limau bali; IDN: jeruk, besar, jeruk bali; KHM: krooch thlong; LAO: kiengz s’aangz, ph’uk, somz oo; MYS: jambua, limau betawi, limau bali, limau serdadu; PHL: lukban, suha (Tagalog); SGP: pomelo; THA: som o (general), kroi-ta long (Khmer), ma khun, ma o (northern), li-ma-ba-li (Malay-Yala), sang-u (Karen-Mae Hong Son); VNM: buoi; ENG: shaddock fruit, pomelo Description: The pomelo is a relatively small tree or may grow to medium size having a short trunk and irregularly widespreading crown. The young branches and twigs may bear sparsely set spines or may be spineless depending on cultivars.

The leaves are egg-shaped or elliptic, the margin entire or distantly shallowly blunt-toothed, grandular-dotted, citrusscented when crushed. Inflorescences are axillary, few-flowered to sometimes single ones; the flowers are creamy white in colour. The fruit is technically a hesperidium – a thick-skinned septate berry, greenish yellow, densely glandular-dotted, the segments composing pale-yellow or pink pulp-vesicles filled with sweetish juice. The seeds are usually few, large, ridged, yellowish, only one embryo. Although it can be propagated by

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

seeds, air-layering is commonly used in Southeast Asia. In the Philippines, shield budding is also a regular practise using rootstocks of calamandarin. Other related species: C. medica L., C. reticulata Blanco and C. aurantifolia Christm. and Panzer) Swingle.

Uses: Fruit is a rich source of vitamin C and calcium; the fresh juicy pulp vesicles can be enjoyed just by eating out of the hand or in fruit salads. Juice can be extracted from fruits and prepared as beverages or for flavouring foods. Meanwhile the rind has pectin used in making jelly, candy and ointments/paste for burns.

The skin of fruit is used in making marmalade. Both fruits and Photos by M. David

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omelo is the largest citrus fruit and is known in the western world as the principal ancestor of the grapefruit. It is known as a luscious food for the Southeast Asians.

leaves produce essential oils which serve as ingredients in scenting toiletry products while the flowers are made into perfumes in Vietnam. Medicinally, leaves, flowers, fruits and seeds have properties which can treat coughs, fevers and gastric disorders. Fruit specifically has alkanizing effect on blood, as purgative, antibacterial and cleansing agent, while the leaves are used for medicinal infusions. Decoctions of leaves, flowers and rind are given for their sedative effect in cases of epilepsy, chorea and convulsive coughing. The hot leaf decoction is administered on swellings and ulcers and fruit juice as febrifuge. The seeds are used against coughs, dyspepsia and lumbago while gum exudes remedies for cough. The wood, which is heavy, hard, tough, finegrained; is a choice for making tool handles.

Distribution and habitat: The origin of the pomelo is uncertain, but there is great possibility that it is indigenous to Malesia. It spread to other parts of Southeast Asia, Indo-China, Tahiti, southern China and the southernmost of Japan and introduced in westward to India, the Mediterranean and tropical America. Introduced also in North Africa and Spain. The pomelo lives best in lowland tropics, of which environmental niches match that of Thailand. Further, this plants can tolerate wide range of soils from coarse sand to heavy clay.

Habit (left); fruit (opposite page)

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Arecaceae

Cocos nucifera L.

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nown as tree of life, this tall palm tree can live up to 100 years. It is one of the most valuable plants to man, in fact, one of the ten most useful trees in the world and an inviting symbol of the tropics. It is a primary source of food, drink, and shelter. In Sanskrit the coconut palm is called “kalpa vriksha”, which is defined as “the tree which provides all the necessities of life.”

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bases of fallen leaves. The fronds (leaves) are sheathing, spirally arranged, pinnate, 4.5 m to 7 m long; the stalk stout with clasping, fibrous sheath at base about a fourth of total length of the frond, shallowly grooved above, rounded beneath; the leaflets several,

Description: The name cocos is probably derived from a Portuguese word which means monkey. Perhaps because of its nut-bearing three germinating pores, resembling a monkey face. Its specific name derives from Latin, meaning nut-bearing (from fero meaning one bear and nux-nucis meaning nut).

The coconut palm, which is known as the tree of life, is solitary, with a stout trunk and grows to 30 m tall and even taller.

It grows straight or leans toward the open as to the seaside. The base of the trunk is swollen surrounded by a mass of roots. The trunk is smooth but ringed with slightly raised scars left by the

Uses: Coconut provides food for millions of people, especially in the tropics. At any one occasion, a coconut palm has 12 different crops of nuts on it, from opening flower to ripe nut. Apical buds of adult plants are an excellent palm-cabbage, a bundle of tightly packed, yellow-white, cabbage-like leaves which is made a tasty treat, a ‘millionaire’s salad’. Unopened flowers used to fashion shoes, caps, even a kind of pressed helmet for soldiers; bruised, it ‘weeps’ a steady dripping of sweet juice’ made into coconut molasses and mixed with grated coconut for candy; source of vinegar, ‘arrack’ –a famous liquor of the East. Opened flowers

ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Photo by M. David

Common names: BRN: kelapa, piasau (Brunei Malay); IDN: kelapa, nyiur, krambil; KHM: doong LAO: phaawz; MYS: kelapa; PHL: niyog; SGP: coconut; THA: mak un (general), dung (ChongChanthaburi), phlo (Karen-Kanchanaburi), ma phrao, yo (MalayPeninsular), ma phraeo (peninsular); VNM: dua; ENG: coconut palm

generally subopposite, linear-lanceolate, folded once at the vase to the top, with rigid midrib, green to light yellow in colour.

Inflorescences are axillary, unopened (immature) looking like a spadix within a spathe, opened (mature) about 1 m to 2 m long, consisting of a central axis with several, spirally arranged spike-like branches, each bearing several male flowers and only one to two female flower near the bare basal part; male flowers, stalkless; female flowers solitary, much larger than the male ones, rounded in bud. Fruits are globose, ovoid or ellipsoidal with fibrous mesocarp and hard endocarp. Seed is only one, very large with thin brown testa, appressed to the endocarp wall and adhering to the endosperm (meat), which is firm, white and oily. The coconut palm is monotypic, meaning that within the genus Cocos only one species, C. nucifera, is recognized.

Habit (above); fruits (opposite page); buko pie (inset)

Photo by J. MacKinnon Photo by M. David

provide a good nectar for bees. Whole fruits: mesocarp fibres, as milk, kernel (or flesh), husk; coconut water as cool sweet liquid/ drinks, so pure and sterile and was used as alternative sterile glucose solution during World War II; boiled toddy, known as jaggery, with lime makes a good cement; nutmeat of mature coconuts is like a custard in flavor and consistency, and is eaten or scraped and squeezed through cloth to yield a ‘cream’ or ‘milk’ used for various foods. Dried, desiccated, and shredded it is used in cakes, pies, candies, and in curries. When nuts are cut open and dried, meat becomes copra, which is processed for oil, rich in glycerine and used to make soaps, shampoos, shaving creams, toothpaste lotions, lubricants, hydraulic fluid, paints, synthetic rubber, plastics, margarine, and in ice cream. Cake residue serves as cattle fodder. Nut husk called coir makes a strong twine or rope, for padding mattresses, upholstery and life-preservers. Fibre resistant to sea water is used for cables and rigging on ships, for making mats, rugs, bags, brooms and brushes. Shell is carved to make drinking cups, dippers, scoops, smoking pipe, bowls, among others. Made into charcoal for cooking, air filters, in gas masks, submarines, and cigarette tips. Accordingly, coconuts are used to cure illnesses and human discomforts as enumerated by Hartwell (1967-1971) and Duke and Wain (1981), among which are anthelmintic, antiseptic, astringent, bactericidal, depurative, diuretic, purgative, refrigerant, stomachic, asthma, colds, constipation, dysentery, earache, erysipelas, fever, flu, gingivitis, gonorrhea, jaundice, rash, scabies, syphylis, toothache, and tuberculosis. Coconut leaves made into clothing, furnishings, screens, walls of temporary buildings, baskets and roofing thatch.

Stiff midribs make cooking skewers, arrows, brooms, brushes, and

for fish traps. Leaf fibre for making mats, slippers, and bags and for short-lived torches. Coconut roots provide a dye, a mouthwash, a medicine for dysentery, and frayed out make tooth-brushes; scorched, used as coffee substitute; medicinally, enorrhagic, antibronchitis, febrifugal, and antigingivitic. Trunk wood for building sheds and other semi-permanent buildings. Outer wood used for carving, especially ornamentals under the name of ‘porcupine

wood’; logs for making rafts. Sections of stem, after scooping out pith, as flumes or gutters for carrying water. Pith of stem has starch used as flour. As a whole, coconut palm represent a beauty at the face of the earth, for it is use as ornamental and landscape species.

Distribution and habitat: Native to the coastal regions of tropical Asia and Pacific; now Pantropical in distribution. The coconut palm thrives on sandy, saline soils; it favours abundant sun-light and regular rainfall over the year.

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45

Ebenaceae

Diospyros blancoi A. DC.

A

minor member of the family Ebenaceae, more admired for its ornamental value than its edible fruits. The fruit possess a strong, unpleasant cheese-like odour actually emanating from the skin, but inside, the flesh, whitish and firm, has a mild sweet flavour, like that of a banana-flavoured apple.

Common names: IDN: buah memtega, bisbul,mabolo; KHM: hong nhung; LAO: hong nhung; MYS: buah lemak, buah mentega; PHL: mabolo, kamagong, tabang (Tagalog); SGP: butterfruit; THA: marit, hong nhung; VNM: thi, hong nhung; ENG: velvet apple, blanco’s persimmon Description: Commonly called kamagong (for its wood) or mabolo (for its fruits) in the Philippines, it is a small- to mediumsized evergreen, dioecious forest tree with oval to conical-shaped crown. A Philippine endemic, it has also been planted for its edible fruits in some tropical places in Asia and some Carribean countries and Florida. If planted closer together, it develops long and straight stem, but generally short and shallowly fluted trunk.

The bark is greyish-brown to blackish with outside dead bark sometimes irregularly peeling off. The leaves are simple, in distinctly two rows, leathery, smoothly fine hairy, dark green and glabrescent above, persistent and light green underneath.

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

The leaf-blade is generally oblong, big, rounded at the base and abruptly narrowed and pointed at the top. The inflorescences are in axillary short-stalked cymes, flowers are smaller in males than in female ones which are solitary and bigger on the axils of the leaves. The fruit is a berry with the seed immersed in a pulp, generally rounded, velvety outside, when young light green becoming light brown to maroon or magenta in colour when ripe, when opened it emits strong cheesy odour but for those who can tolerate the smell, the pulp is edible and sweet.

In the Philippines, the main flowering period is during dry season in February-April, fruiting in June-September. Male trees must be planted near the female trees for effective pollination and fruit production. The tree is generally grown from seeds, but can be propagated by grafting. Shield-budding has been successfully practiced in the Philippines and is the preferred means of perpetuating superior types.

Uses: One can relate this fruit to a butterfly wing, because the velvety covering of the skin resembles the irritating properties of the scales in butterfly wings. Therefore, the fruits should be peeled before eating, and then kept in the refrigerator for a few hours before serving to let the unpleasant smell to dissipate.

Further, the fruit is noted as a fairly good source of iron and calcium and a good source of vitamin B. Some people slice or quarter the flesh, season with lime or lemon juice or Grenadine

syrup and serve fresh as dessert. The flesh is also diced and combined with that of other fruits in salads. If stewed in syrup, the flesh becomes fibrous and tough. Cut into strips and fried in butter, it is crisp and fairly agreeable as a vegetable of the dasheen or taro type appropriate for serving with ham, sausage or other spicy meat. Good varieties are used also for the preparation of various drinks. The sapwood is pinkish or reddish; may have gray markings while heartwood is streaked and mottled with gray and is sometimes all-black. In the Philippines, it is carved into highly prized hair combs and other handicrafts. Mabolo seedlings are also used as rootstock on which to graft the Japanese persimmon. Ideal also in planting line avenues.

Distribution and habitat: This tree is indigenous to the Philippines where it is very common. It has been introduced in other tropical places such as Java, Malaysia, and Singapore.

Also, it is brought into Florida, some scattered around the Caribbean area, in Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Trinidad, in Honduras, and Cuba. There are a few in Bermuda and in Hawaii.

Mabolo grows well in areas with a monsoon climate from sea level to 800 m elevation and on almost any soil. It is very resistant to typhoons.

Fruits (opposite page); habit of D. philippinensis (inset)

Photo by J. MacKinnon

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47

Photo by M. David

Malvaceae

Durio Adans.

Durio species is best described in the poem below: I Like Them Spiky Fruits

by Stephan Reeve Oh, I like them spiky fruit They’re so creamy and they’re so yummy They feel so good down in my tummy Oh, I like them spiky fruit Oh, I like them spiky fruit They’re so luscious and some say smelly They’re so satisfying in my belly Oh, I like them spiky fruit Oh, I like them spiky fruit They’re big and brown and so nutritious There’s no eatin’ more delicious Oh, I like them spiky fruit!

Common names: BRN: durian putih; IDN: durien, durian; MYS: durian; MMR: durian; PHL: durian; SGP: durian; THA: thu rian (general), due-yae (Malay Peninsular), rian (peninsular); VNM: sau rieng; ENG: durian Description: Considered in Asia as the King of the Fruits, durian is mostly a medium-sized tree with a conical or oblongish crown, cylindrical trunk and greyish-brown smooth bark. The overall colour of the crown is light green and bronze-brown with a golden-silvery sheen. The leaves are simple, elliptic, somewhat leathery with a distinctly swollen stalk gradually narrowed from the blade towards its base. Inflorescences are borne usually on the older branches forming a flat-topped cluster of flowers. The flowers are rounded or ovoid in bud and when mature, they are

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Photos by A. Baja-Lapis

D

urian is a fruit unique to Southeast Asia having a strong smell and a distinctive taste.

To many Asians, the stink is a welcome odour for they regard durian as the King of Fruits, a rare delicacy that is well worth the high price it commands.

Fruits of D. graveolens

white to greenish white. The fruit is a capsule, generally variously rounded, green to yellowish brown and the outside is beset with many broadly pyramidal-based and sharply pointed spines that are harmful when touched by bare hands. The fruit segments are usually five, each with a seed covered by thick and fibrous, fleshy seed covering, unpleasant to the uninitiated but very palatable to connoisseurs.

Fruiting seasons are July and August (Ceylon) and early in March and April; late in September and October (Malaya).

Although fruit production decreases in very old trees, it was observed that fruit quality increase with age, and fruit from older trees is greatly prized. Durians from trees aged 30, 40, 50, 60 years and more are particularly sought after and savoured for their immediately evident enhanced qualities of flavour, aroma, and texture, and can be identified visually by having very wrinkled skin on the fruit sections. Seeds up to 4 cm long, chestnut like, glossy, red-brown, completely covered by a white or yellowish, soft, very sweet aril. Propagation is by seed and budding. In Southeast Asia, it was noted that pollination is best achieved in the presence of natural pollinators such as moths and small bats (mainly Eoncyteris spelea), which visit and transfer pollen when they visit the flowers for nectar during evenings when the flowers are receptive. The Genus Durio has at least 27 or 28 species, 19 of which are native to the island of Borneo (thought to be Durio’s original center of diversity), 11 to

peninsular Malaysia, and 7 to Sumatra. Of the 27 species, at least seven are notable for producing edible fruit, one of which is Durio zibethinus, which is cultivated commercially in huge quantities in Southeast Asia.

Uses: Smelly it may seems, but ripe durian fruit (actually the arils which are edible parts) is very much liked due to its unique taste appeal. Particularly in Southeast Asia, durians are loved by millions of people with a passion and near-reverence quite unusual for mere food. In fact, in Indonesia the rice harvests suffer when it coincides with its harvest season. But in the West, durians have gained a notorious reputation for their unfamiliar and strong aroma, largely influence by the writings of Western travel who used nasty phrases like “unbearable stench,” “rotten onions with limburger cheese and low-tide seaweed,” “French custard passed through a sewer pipe,” or “like sitting on the toilet eating your favorite ice cream.” Conversely, durian flavour is much loved in ice cream, cookies, candies, and other desserts; also for durian cake, flavouring and confectionery and durian powder. Meanwhile, the unripe fruits are eaten as vegetables while the boiled or roasted seeds are eaten as snacks. Dried rinds are used as fuel to smoke and flavour fish and the ash serves as bleacher of silk. Spiky durian rinds are good for making many small holes in a raised bed for planting seeds. The ash is also reportedly beneficially ingested by women following childbirth.

The wood is used as poles and interiors of Malayan huts and also made as boat masts. Medicinal properties are also present in leaves, shoots, roots and flesh. In Southeast Asia, parasitic worms are said to be expelled by eating durian; fevers are said to

Habit (above); flowers (inset, top); buds (inset, bottom)

be reduced by drinking a tea of the leaves and roots, or applying durian leaf juice to the head; swellings and skin diseases are said to be aided in healing by applying a tea of the leaves and fruits. It is also considered as aphrodisiac. Interestingly, the fruit is also attractive to a great variety of animals and insects, including monkeys, gibbons, orangutans, and apes, birds, dogs, pigs, rhinoceros, bears, squirrels, tapirs, deer, elephants, tigers, and even the domestic cat.

Distribution and habitat: Native to peninsular Malaysia and Borneo. Currently commonly cultivated throughout Southeast Asia. They are grown to a limited extent in northern Australia and southern India, and relatively small numbers of the trees are found in Jamaica, Honduras, Puerto Rico, Trinidad, and Hawaii.

The tree is ultra-tropical, a native of Southeast Asian equatorial

rainforests, and needs much tropical warmth, abundant moisture, and sunshine to thrive. (except for the young trees’ first year, when semishade is preferred — simulating rainforest conditions). Grows best on deep, loamy, well-drained soils, high in organic matter. Gently sloping to flat terrain is most suitable for durian cultivation.

Durian is very ancient and primitive fruit. Some botanists regard the wild ancestors of modern durians as one of the first plants to rely on animals for dispersal of its seeds, enticing them to do so with attractive, nutritious, delicious, and odiferous food surrounding the seeds within a large fruit capsule. Zibethinus is derived from the Italian word zibetto, which means “civet cat,” an old name for “skunk”— very unflattering for the durian, and some durian antagonists would say, for the civet cat.

FRUITS

49

Clusiaceae

Garcinia mangostana L.

Common names: BRN: manggis; IDN: mangis; KHM: mongkhut; LAO: mangkhud; MYS: mangis, mesetor, semetah, sementah; PHL: mangis, mangostan (Tagalog); SGP: mangosteen; THA: mangkhut; VNM: mang cut; ENG: mangosteen Description: Mangosteen is a slow-growing small tree with usually erect and pyramidal crown. The trunk is generally shortboled because it branches low. The bark is dark-brown to blackish with yellowish coloured gummy latex. Twigs are generally thick with large leaves. The leaves are simple, entire, opposite, without stipules, short-stalked, ovate-oblong or oblong with rounded ends, leathery and thick, dark-green, slightly glossy above, yellowish-green and dull beneath, with wide and prominent pale midrib. The inflorescence is cymose, the flowers unisexual, fleshy; the flowers in clusters, with 4 thick sepals and 4 thick fleshy ovate petals, green with red spots on the outside and yellowish-red inside, stamens are many. The fruit is round or subglobose, crowned with a persistent style and supported by accrescent-persistent, green calyx, when ripe dark-purple to redpurple, smooth; the pericarp thick, in cross-section reddish

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

towards the outside and purplish-white on the inside. The seed covering is white, soft, fleshy edible but adhering on the seed.

The plants is propagated by seeds and bud grafting. Other species of Garcinia with edible fruits: G. morella (Gaertn.) Desr. from India and G. hanburyi Hook. f. from Thailand.

Uses: The Queen of Fruits was loved by a queen. Mangosteen was said to be Queen Victoria’s favorite fruit. One can majestically indulge with its sour-sweet and soft arils. Other than dessert, it can also be canned as jam, while the seeds can be roasted and boiled. Likewise, medicinally the dried and powdered

rind are used against dysentery; made into an ointment for eczema and other skin disorders. Rind decoction for diarrhoea, cystitis, gonorrhea, gleet and as astringent lotion. Fruit rind contains tannin and rosin, for tanning leather. Leaves and bark decoction as a febrifuge, to treat thrush, diarrhoea, dysentery and urinary tract disorders; leaf infusion with unripe banana and benzoin is applied to the wound of circumcision. Twigs are made to chewsticks while bark extract called “amibiasine”, is used to treat amoebic dysentery. Root decoction can regulate menstruation. The wood is made into handles for spears, rice pounders, construction and cabinet work.

Photos by M. David

O

ne of the most praised of tropical fruits, and certainly the most esteemed fruit in the family Clusiaceae, the mangosteen, regarded as the Queen of all tropical fruits.

Leaves (above); fruits (opposite page)

Distribution and habitat: Mangosteen is known only as a cultivated species; cultivation has long been limited to Southeast Asia; also now in Madagascar, Sri Lanka, India, Central America, Brazil, and northeastern Australia. The mangosteen is ultratropical tree that grows well in fertile clay or loam or sandy loam or laterite soils. It favours good drainage, but the tree does well near lakes or streams. Although the high humidity and rainfall seem to benefit the trees, they can live in areas having several months of dry season. A full sun to light shade is also required with animal manure fertilization.

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51

Meliaceae

Lansium domesticum Correa

L

ocal tales narrates that this fruit was avoided by village folks because it is poisonous. Accordingly, people who cannot help themselves to taste the bunch of yellow fruits, suffered from stomach ache to death. Until a famine occurred in the village, and due to hunger, people looked at the trees full of dangling fruits with hope and prayer.

The story ends happily as the prayers of the folks were heard by God, and since then the fruits can be eaten.

Common names: BRN: langsat: IDN: duku,langsat, dukulangsat dan dokong; MYS: langsat, duku; PHL: lansones; SGP: langsat; THA: lang sat (general), du-ke-ko (Karen-Mae Hong Son), langsat khao (Narathiwat), la-sa (Malay Peninsular); VNM: bon bon Description: This tree is generally small- to medium-sized, reaching only up to 30 m tall with short branches. It is tolerant of shade and grows underneath taller trees. In the Philippines, they are planted under coconut trees. The crown is variously shaped and sometimes small dead branches are found sticking out from it. The trunk is straight, sometimes shallowly fluted at the base with low buttresses, bark relatively slightly rough, yellowish brown to greyish in colour. The leaves are compound, alternate,

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

imparipinnate, the leaflets alternate, the ultimate leaflet usually the biggest. The leaf blades are broadly elliptic, the midrib, vein and nerves, generally slightly depressed (above and prominently raised underneath, vase acute and abruptly acuminate at the top. The base of the petiole and the stalk of the leaflets are swollen. The inflorescence is simple or branched raceme, small, fleshy, white or pale yellow. The fruits are in clusters of 2 to 30, usually ovoid in shape, when ripe, the outside of the fruit is light-greyish yellow to pale brown or pink, the pericarp leathery and shiny beneath, inside contents 5 to 6 segments of juicy, translucent, sweet-sour arils that covers the seeds and eaten. The seed has a bitter taste. Peak fruiting season occurs from July to November while secondary fruits may occur during January to April. Propagation is by seeds, cleft-grafting, side-grafting, and approach-grafting.

Uses: One must first encounter the unpleasant, slightly sticky, milky sap when peeling this fruit and later on be rewarded by the delightful, juicy flesh with combination of sweet and sour taste. Be sure not to be carried away because you might have a bite of the bitter seed. In the wild, orangutan also shared the same interests with humans in eating this fruit. The fruit can also be canned in a syrup and made to candies. Meanwhile the dried or fresh peels are very popular among folks in rural areas as cheap source of mosquito repellant; peels when burned emits

aromatic smokes that drives away the insects (fumigation).

Another procedure: the dried peels are roasted and pounded into powder form, then mixed with starch to make mosquito coil for future use.

Medicinally, the leaf juice is used as eye-drops for sore eyes; peel for diarrhoea and intestinal spasms. Other medicinal uses are: pulverized seeds against fever and parasitic worms; bark poultice for scorpion stings while the astringent bark decoction as treatment for dysentery and malaria. Meanwhile the wood is utilized as house posts, rafters, tool handles and small utensils in Java; the wood-tar, derived by distillation is used to blacken the teeth. Moreover, the seed and rind are rich in tannin and possess chemical substances, which are medicinally and industrially valuable.

Distribution and habitat: Originated in Southeast Asia (from Peninsular Thailand to Borneo). Cultivated also in Vietnam, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Australia, Surinam and Puerto Rico. It is an ultratropical species, and needs a humid atmosphere, plenty of moisture and will not tolerate long dry seasons. Some shade is required during the early years. It grows best on deep, rich, welldrained, sandy loam or other soils that are slightly acid to neutral and high in organic matter.

Fruits (opposite page); habit (inset)

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53

Photos by M. David

Sapindaceae

Litchi chinensis Sonn.

L

ychee, the crown of glory for a Chinese family and symbol of romance and love. Professor Groff, in his book, The lychee and the lungan, tells us that the production of superior types of lychee is a matter of great family pride and local rivalry in China, where the fruit is valued as no other.

Lychee happens to be the most renowned of a group of edible fruits of the soapberry family.

Common names: BRN: laici; IDN: litsi, klengkeng, kalengkeng; LAO: ngççw; MMR: kyetmauk, litch, tayok-zi, wamayar, lam yai; MYS: laici, kalengkang; PHL: alupag, letsias; SGP: lychee; THA: lin chi (general), lin chi pa (Phetchabun), si raman (Chanthaburi), si raman khao (Trat); VNM: vai, ngan, cây, xanh tu hu; ENG: lychee, litchi, leechee, lichee, lichi Description: Lychee is generally a small to medium-sized, slowgrowing tree attaining a height of about 15 m and usually roundtopped crown. The trunk is generally short with low branches and smooth grey bark. The tree looks particularly spectacular at fruiting time with its display of strawberry-red fruit pericarps.

The leaves are compound, alternate, without stipules, paripinnate, leaflets 2 to 4 pairs originally 3 pairs, opposite to subopposite, blade above shiny, dark green, underneath slightly whitish, nerves and veins not prominent on both surfaces; leaf

54 54

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stalk swollen at base, leaflet stalk short, only slightly swollen at the base, slightly with a knee. Inflorescences are in cymose, terminal clusters. The flowers are small, yellowish green and without petals. The outer part of the fruits is rather rough, covered with knobs, pink to strawberry-red when ripe, rounded, oval or heart-shaped. The seed is wholly covered with an aril which is white, translucent, firm and juicy, sweet, slightly fragrant, deliciously edible and separates clearly from the seed.

Propagated by air-layering, seeds and grafting.

The Chinese consider the fruit, which is a red, heartshaped fruit, a symbol of romance and love. The Imperial concubine Lady Yang Kuei Fei of the last emperor of the T’ang dynasty, Hsuan Tsung (A.D. 712-756) had a passion for fresh lychee fruits. To flatter her Lady, the emperor had them brought

from Canton in southern China about 600 miles away from his palace, and ordained guards to transport them in a “Pony Express” for the Lady to enjoy them fresh.

Uses: Chinese believe that excessive consumption of raw lychees causes fever and nosebleed. According to legends, ancient devotees consumed from 300 to 1,000 per day. Other than eating the fruit raw or fresh, other preparations of this fruit can be enjoyed such as for fruit cups and fruit salads, ice cream, and sherbet, for some meal recipes and cakes, preserved in syrup, dried form eaten like raisin and as jelly and juice; spiced or pickled, or made into sauce, preserves or wine; dried flesh used as tea sweetener. Medicinally, for cough and to have a beneficial effect on gastralgia, tumors and enlargements of the glands. In China, the seeds are credited with an analgesic action and they are given in neuralgia and orchitis. In India, the seeds are powdered and, because of their astringency, administered in intestinal troubles, and they have the reputation there, as in China, of relieving neuralgic pains. A tea of the fruit peel is taken to overcome smallpox eruptions and diarrhea. Root, bark and flowers decoctions gargled to alleviate ailments of the throat. Economically, in China, great quantities of honey are harvested from hives near lychee trees. Honey from bee colonies in lychee groves in Florida yield the highest quality, with a rich, delicious flavour of the lychee juice, and the honey does not granulate.

Photos by A. Baja-Lapis

Fruits (opposite page); habit (right)

Distribution and habitat: The lychee is native to low elevations of the provinces of Kwangtung and Fukien in southern China. Cultivation spread over the years through neighbouring areas of southeastern Asia and offshore islands. Late in the 17th Century, it was carried to Burma and, 100 years later, to India. It arrived in the West Indies in 1775, in England and France, East Indies, Hawaii,

Florida, California. There are also extensive plantings in Pakistan, Bangladesh, Burma, former Indochina, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, Queensland, Madagascar, Brazil and South Africa. Lychees are grown mostly in dooryards from northern Queensland to New South Wales. Lychees need full sun, but young trees must be protected from heat, frost and high winds. The tree needs a well-drained soil that is

rich in soils with pH between 5.5. and 7.5. Apply a thick layer of organic mulch to the soil for the plants to grow much better.

Wild lychee also occurs in the Philippines [Litchi chinensis Sonn. subsp philippinensis (Radlk.) Leeh.] and is commonly called ‘alupag’. The fruit is also edible, but only a part of the seed.

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55

Anacardiaceae

Mangifera indica L.

N

Common names: BRN: empalam, mangga air (Brunei Malay); IDN: mangga, mempelam; KHM: svaay; LAO: mwangx, mak mouang; MYS: manga, mempelam, ampelam; MMR: krerk, kruk, la-mung, mak-mong, ma-monton, mamung, sagyaw, shagyaw, takau, thayet, umung; PHL: mangga; SGP: mango; THA: khu (Karen- Kanchanaburi), khok-lae (Lawa-Kanchanaburi), cho-chok, chok (Chong-Chanthaburi), trok (Chaobon-Nakhon Ratchasima), pao (Malay Peninsular), pae (Lawa-Chiang Mai), ma muang ban, ma muang suan (central), sa-kho, sa-kho-sa (KarenMae Hong Son), sa-wai (Khmer), mak-mong (Shan-Northern); VNM: xoai; ENG: mango

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Photo by M. David

ative to Myanmar and India, mango is a favourite of many people throughout the world. It is one of the first tropical fruits to be discovered by man and has been cultivated for over 4000 years, and is present in some Indian legends. It is said that the original wild mangos were small with little, fibrous flesh. In time, the mango was noted as one of the most familiar domesticated trees in dooryards or in small or large commercial plantings throughout the humid and semiarid lowlands of the tropical world. Over 500 named varieties of the mango have been produced.

Habit

Description: This tree which is native to India and Myanmar is cultivated for its fruit. There are a number of “cultivars,” each with special fruit taters as well as fruit sizes.

The most commonly planted cultivar in the Philippines is the “carabao,” which taste sweet and exported fresh or in direct

form. The tree has a massive rounded or umbrella-shaped crown with a short trunk. Sometimes, because of the heavy crown, some trees are felled down by a strong wind but stay alive especially when the roots are not completely uprooted.

The trunk is generally short and stout, about one to four meters long up to the first branch, sometimes longer and over a meter in diameter at breast height or in much older trees, over a meter wide is not uncommon. The bark is rough, irregular fissured, brown to dark-greyish brown, sometimes outer dead bark peeling off. Injured trunks and branches when damaged give colourless sap which is fragrant. The leaves are simple, alternate, then whorled at top of twigs, elliptic, about 20 cm to 30 cm long, slightly pointed at the base and narrowly pointed at the top, stalk swollen at the base, young leaves sometimes pinkish turning shiny green on birth surfaces, fragrant when crushed.

Inflorescences are in terminal panicles, widely branched, about 60 cm long. The flowers are small, greenish to light yellow, sometimes reddish with 5 petals and 5 stamens. The fruit is a drupe having fleshy pericarp which is edible, variable in size and shape and only one seed. Generally ripe fruits are yellow, although some cultivars turn pinkish or reddish or remain green when ripe. Propagated by seed, grafting and chip budding. The related species are: Mangifera caesia Jack, M. foetida Lour. and M. odorata Griffith.

Photo by M. David

Uses: Be it ripe or unripe, you name it, this very popular apple (peach) of the tropics, with its juicy flesh is enjoyed by everyone in the world. The fruit can be eaten fresh or processed (at various stages of maturity) in the form of pickles or chutneys, dried slices, canned slices in syrup or preserves, juice, puree, paste, ice cream, yoghurts and souffles. In India, surprisingly, unripe mango substitutes tamarind as sour element in Indian cuisine. The process includes: removal of stone (seed), the fruit is cut in slices, dried and afterwards ground to a pale grey powder.

Although the powder is much weaker than tamarind and has a subtle, resin-like taste, it useful when only a hint of tartness is desired and to avoid the dark brown colouring of tamarind. Often times use in vegetables than with meat, but is usually found in tikka spice mixtures for barbecued meat. Eaten also as salads or with savoury or chilli-hot dips. Seed kernels when processed can be feeds for cattle and poultry. During famine period in India, the seeds were boil, soak in water or roast to serve as alternative food. The young leaves are eaten fresh or cooked like vegetables.

Dried flowers or bark and kernel decoction use as astringent while the extract of unripe fruit and bark, stems and leaves have antibiotic property. It is also used for diarrhoea and excessive bleeding. Meanwhile, the wood is fairly strong, hard and easy to work, hence used in joinery, furniture components, face veneers and corestock for plywood, turnery. It also make an excellent charcoal and for mushroom culture.

But a bit of warning, some findings show unwanted properties of the plant. The leaves and sap can cause skin problems (dermatitis). Eating too much mango can evidently cause kidney inflammation.

Fruits

Distribution and habitat: The mango is native to southern Asia, especially Myanmar and eastern India. It spread early on to Malaya, eastern Asia and eastern Africa. Also present in Papua New Guinea, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Sikkim and Southern China.

Mangoes were introduced to California (Santa Barbara) in 1880.

Mango thrives both in the subtropics and the tropics. It grows in a wide range of soils and moisture regimes. The tree is drought-tolerant, but do not suffer in occasional flooding. It favours location with access to water and nutrients, with soil pH range 5.5 to 7.

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57

Musaceae

Musa L. (edible cultivars)

T

he genus Musa was first described by the preLinnean (before 1753) Rumphius. The name may have been derived from mauz (mouz or moz), the Arabic word for the banana fruit, but it was accepted by Linnaeus because it could have been in commemoration of Antonius Musa (63 to 14 BC) who was a physician to the first Roman Emperor, Octavius Augustus.

Common names: BRN: pisang; IDN: pisang; KHM: cheek nam vaa; LAO: kwayz; MYS: pisang; MMR: wet-ma-lut; PHL: saging (Tagalog); SGP: banana, pisang; THA: kluai; VNM: chuoi; ENG: banana Description: Banana is a plant with no persistent stem above the ground. Although often called a perennial herb, it is not so because once it bear fruit, it dies. The semblance of perenniality is due to its aerial shoots (suckers) which sprout even before the main plant bears fruit. The pseudostem is about 2 m to 9 m tall, depending on the cultivar, with a short underground stem (corm) from which short rhizomes grow and produce the suckers. The pseudostem is composed of overlapping leaf-sheaths tightly clasping one over the other forming a gradually tapering bundle of 20 cm to 50 cm in diameter. The new leaves which originate from the corm grow up continuously through the center of the

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pseudostem with the blade still rolled tightly, then expand as they reach the top. The expanded blade are large, oblong, about 150 cm to 400 cm x 70cm to 100 cm, with quite rigid rachis which is rounded below and channelled or with longitudinal groove above, both sides of the blade flattish with distinctly raised or shallow grooves indicating parallel veins and easily torn off by strong wind or if intentionally pulled apart. The inflorescences are terminal compound spikes and only one per plant arising from the stem (corm) then shooting up through the center of the pseudostem and bending downward as it protrude beyond the top. The flowers are arranged in groups and each group is enclosed in a large ovate, pointed reddish bract and consists of two closely appressed rows of flowers; the bracts become reflexed and shed off when the flowers develop into fruits; the female flowers develop nearest the axis, the male ones away at the end of the inflorescence. Only female flowers develop into banana fruits; the fruits vary in length and diameter depending on a kind of cultivar. Fruits are berry, deep green yellow or maroon. The flesh (the ones eaten) are ivory-white to yellow or salmon yellow, may be firm, astringent, even gummy with latex when unripe, then turning tender and slippery, or soft and mellow or sometimes dry and mealy or starchy when ripe, sweet or subacid. Cultivars are normally without seeds. Each banana plant bears fruit only once. Propagation of bananas is done with rhizomes called suckers or pups. But for the case of wild

bananas, spread is through seed distributions by monkeys and bats. Some species under the edible cultivars include: M. acuminata, M. balbisiana, M. cavendishii, M. nana, and M. paradisiaca.

Uses: The fruit is main product of this plant. Ripe fruit is consumed in many ways (cook or raw) of the human diet, from simply being peeled and eaten to fruit cups and salads, sandwiches, custards and gelatins; being mashed and mixed in ice cream, bread, muffins, and cream pies; preserved in syrups, as beer and wine, as vinegar or it may be dehydrated. Unripe ones found in various food preparations and as puree for infant food and made to banana chips and starch. In the Philippines, ‘saba’ cultivar is made into a popular snack called banana cue. The banana is deeply fried, sprinkled with brown sugar which will caramelize and coat the banana. About 2 to 3 pieces will be stucked in a thin barbecue(bamboo) stick. The male buds of some cultivars (e.g., saba) is used as vegetable. Dried peel has tannin to blacken leather; while the ash has potash for making soap.

Burned peel of unripe fruits is used for dyeing. Flowers (banana blossoms of some cultivars) are dried and mixed in meat dishes.

Leaves used as plates and for lining in cooking pits and for wrapping food for cooking or storage. A section of leaf often serves as an eye-shade, upside-down it can be made into instant “umbrella” or “raingear”, use for thatching, packing, and cigarette

Photo by J. MacKinnon

of catarrh and diarrhoea. Flowers have medicinal properties such in curing bronchitis and dysentery, ulcers, and diabetes. Plant sap used for hysteria, epilepsy, leprosy, fevers, hemorrhages, acute dysentery, and diarrhea, hemorrhoids, and insect stings and bites. The sap exuding from the base of the cut trunk is used as urethral injection against gonorrhoea, and to stop hair loss and promote its growth. Young leaves used against chest pains, as poultices on burns and other skin afflictions. The astringent ashes of the unripe peel and leaves for dysentery and diarrhoea, treating malignant ulcers. Roots are used as remedies for digestive disorders and dysentery.

Further, the plants because of its leaves and fruits, plays a big role in cultural tradition. For instance, in Indonesia, it is most useful during weddings, house establishing, and other religious ceremonies.

Flower and fruits

wrappers; fastened pseudostems as rafts, fibre for fishing lines, made into thin, transparent fabric called “agna” material for women’s blouses and men’s shirts, handkerchiefs, fashioned into soles of shoes, as floor coverings. Head of the stem can be cooked as vegetable or used as pig food. Other vegetative parts and the rejected fruits also serves as fodder, specifically the former during water scarcity as the pseudostem contains much water.

Medicinally, the fruit is aphrodisiac, the fully ripe ones serve as laxative when eaten early in the morning while the unripe is part of the diet for person suffering from haemoptysis and diabetes; as dried, it is antiscourbutic. The banana flour is used for dyspepsia with flatulence and acidity. Peel and pulp of fully ripe ones have antifungal and antibiotic properties. They have serotonin that inhibits gastric secretion and stimulates the smooth muscle of the intestines. Seed mucilage is given in cases

Distribution and habitat: The exact origin of this plant is unknown, but consider to have come from Malesia (a plant geographical unit comprising Singapore, the Federation of Malaysia, New Guinea, Indonesia, and the Philippines) as the primary center. Then from Southeast Asia, cultivation expands into the tropics and subtropics of Asia, America, Africa, and Australia; found also in Europe and in the Pacific to the Marquesas to Hawaii. Banana grows best in warm and humid tropical climates, and temperature is an important factor. In the equatorial highlands, the banana disappears at elevations above 600 m. Also, it favours full sun with steady moisture supply and planted in deep, friable loam soil with good drainage and aeration.

FRUITS

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Sapindaceae

Nephelium lappaceum L.

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rom the outside, the rambutan fruit looks like one of life’s more prickly problems. But pick it up and one will discover that its long tentacles are really quite soft and harmless. The hairy covering is responsible for its common name, which is based on the Malay word “rambut”, meaning “hair”.

Description: Rambutan in cultivation is a hermaphroditic small tree coming mostly from clonal stocks, attaining only from 4 m to 7 m tall with an open spreading crown but in the wild the trees are fairly medium-sized with longer trunks. The bark is rather smooth, grey to blackish coloured. The twigs are rather slender, brown coloured including rachises and stalks of leaves and leaflets. The leaves are compound, alternate, paripinnate or imparipinnate upon abortion of one leaflet of the terminal pair, usually only 2 to 3 pairs, the leaf blade is elliptic to

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petals usually absent, sometimes up to 4; disk hairy or glabrous; stamens generally 5 to 8, exserted in males; filaments with dense long hairs at least at the base; pistils 2 or rarely 3-part, densely hairy, well developed ; stigma spreading to finally recoiled . The fruits are ellipsoid to subglobular, pericarp covered by numerous long, supple, curved, thick,-based, 0.5 cm to 2 cm long hairs. The seed is ellipsoid or oblong, slightly compressed, about 2.5 cm to 3.5 cm long by 1 cm to 1.5 cm wide, enveloped by a usually thick, juicy, white to light yellowish coloured, transluscent, sweet or sometimes slightly sour edible seedcovering (sarcotesta) that is sometimes strongly attached to (sucking variety) or easily removed from (peeling-off variety )the seed.

Fruiting season in June (main crop) and a lesser one in December while in the Philippines, its from July to October or occasionally to November. Seed 2.5 cm to 3.4 cm x 1 cm to 1.5 cm covered by a usually thick, juicy, white to yellow, translucent, sarcotesta. Seedling: cotyledons remain enveloped by fruit wall; leaves paripinnate, only first pair opposite. Propagation is by seeds, budding, approach grafting, and air-layering. The tree can be grown as second canopy underneath coconuts and other tall light trees. Another related species found also in Southeast Asia is the N. ramboutan-ake (Labill.)

Leenh. known as pulasan.

Photo by M. David

Common names: BRN: rambutan; IDN: rambutan; KHM: ser mon, chle sao mao; MYS: rambutan; MMR: kyetmauk, rambosteen; PHL: rambutan; SGP: rambutan; THA: ka-mo-tae, mo-tae, a-mo-tae (Malay-Pattani), ngo (central), ngo pa (Nakhon Si Thammarat), phom ngo, phruan (Pattani); VNM: chom chom, vai tieu, vai quoc

obovate, about 5 cm to 28 cm by 2 cm to 10.5 cm, dark green above, dull or only slightly shiny, underneath is light green to yellowish green coloured, nerves and midribs are distinct on both surface although the veins are less distinct on the above surface, the leaf stalks about 3 cm to 6 cm long, thickened at the vase, leaflet stalks short, rather stout. Inflorescences are terminal to subterminal (cymose clusters). The flowers are either a male borne only in one individual tree on a hermaphrodite, the latter effectively a female, i.e. the stamens are aborted and the pistil is robust and male where the pistils are aborted but the stamens are robust, whitish , yellowish or greenish; the sepals 4 to 5,

Fruits (above); habit (opposite page); young fruits (inset)

Photos by M. David

Uses: A lovely addition to dessert fruits, this can be enjoyed by tearing the rind open, and the sweet, succulent egg-shaped arils are exposed for nibbling. Some preferred it as jam while as canned products they are export winners for some ASEAN countries. Other than food stuff, fruits have some medicinal values, such as astringent, and dewormer. Similar uses are also found in leaves, roots, bark, and dried rind. Roasted seeds are also edible and are also source of rambutan tallow, a basic ingredient in soap and candle making (if available in large volume). Moreover, the wood is a suitable construction material.

Distribution and habitat: The species ranges from southern China, through Indo-China, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines; cultivated throughout the humid tropics of Asia (Sri Lanka to New Guinea). They prefer high humidity and rainfall and little variation from a 28ยบC daily mean temperature. Grows well in deep alluvial soil and those which contain high organic matter is ideal for its growth and development. These soils should be well drained.

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Arecaceae

Salacca zalacca (Gaertner.) Voss

Common names: BRN: salak; IDN: salak; MYS: salak; MMR: yingaw, yin-ngan; SGP: salak; THA: sala (general), salao (Malay-Narathiwat), sa-la-cha-wa, sa-lak, sa-la (Malay Peninsular); ENG: salak palm, snake palm Description: The salak palm is a relatively small, usually dioecious, very spiny, creeping and tillering plant growing in compact clumps formed by successive branching at the base from the rhizomes. Roots do not extend deep into the soil. The stems are mostly underground stolons with only the terminal leaf-bearing part more upright and reaching a length of a few meters and a diameter of 10 cm to 15 cm, often branching. The internodes are very congested and the leaf traces are set almost horizontally. The leaves are pinnate; the leaf sheaths, stalks and leaflets armed with numerous, long thin, grey to blackish spines.

Inflorescences an axillary compound spadix, stalked, at first enclosed by spathes; male inflorescence is about half a meter to a meter long, consisting of half a dozen spadices. Fruits are

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globose to ellipsoid drupes, tapering towards the base and rounded at the tops; the external layers of the pericarp comprised of numerous yellow to brown, united, scales, overlapping at its edges, each scale ending in a fragile prickle. Seeds usually 3 in each fruit, fleshy cream-coloured outer seed coat and a smooth inner part, 23 mm to 29 mm by 15mm to 27 mm, 3angled with 2 flat-faces and curved ones. The species is propagated by seeds and sideshoots (removal of rooted lateral offshoots from older plants). It is harvested from wild but also in plantations. Another peculiar feature of the plant are the sharp

thorns, which are strongly glued on the scales of the unripe fruit, serving as warning device against any eater who attempts to eat the fruit at such stage. Inversely, the well mature fruits says it all when its time to eat them, such as when the thorns fall off, brown to yellowish colouring and emission of a nice, inviting and delicious smell.

Uses: Salak palm is grown for its fruits, which are usually eaten fresh when fully ripe. It is sweet but astringent. But it can also be canned, candied, and pickled. The unripe ones are also made into a spicy salad in Indonesia. The seed kernels of young fruits are eaten in Java. The cluster of this palms (closely planted) formed an indestructible, spiny fences. The leaflets are thatching materials while the bark of petioles are good for matting.

Photos by A. Baja-Lapis

S

naky and thorny. Salak is an indigenous palm throughout the Indo-Malaysian region and a minor fruit with increasing commercial importance. It is popularly known as Snake Fruit, because the fruit is covered with brown scales resembling snake skin.

Habit (above); fruits (opposite page)

Distribution and habitat: Salak is found in the wild in southwestern Java and southern Sumatra, but the exact origin is not known. It is cultivated in Thailand, throughout Malaysia, and Indonesia as far as Moluccas. It is also introduced in New Guinea, the Philippines, and Queensland (Australia), Ponape Island (Caroline Archipelago) and noted as well in Fiji Islands.

Salak favours humid tropical lowland conditions. Due to superficial root systems, it requires high water table, rain or irrigation mostly part of the year. Grows as spiny thickets in flattened swampy terrain.

FRUITS

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Meliaceae

Sandoricum koetjape (Burm. f.) Merr.

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omes from Southeast Asia, and is called the “Lolly Fruit” because you have to suck it to get the flavour, as the flesh sticks to the seed.

Description: The santol or kechapi is a fruit tree planted in backyards and gardens in Southeast Asia for its edible, subacid or sour arils or for jams and jelly. This tree has straight trunk, usually with two leading branches forming oblongish to roundish crowns, about 15 m to 45 m tall and 15 cm to 75 cm in diameter at breast height. The trunk of trees planted closer together form straight and longer stem to the first big branch but usually short with two big branches forming spreading crown.

The bark is relatively smooth, light to pale brown color. The leaves are evergreen or sometimes briefly decidous, alternate, compound, trifoliate, the twigs, petioles and underneath of leaflets finely smooth hairy, leaf blades rounded to ovate-oblong,

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Photos by M. David

Common names: BRN: sentul (Brunei Malay), apu-apu (Dusun), kelampu (Iban); IDN: ketjapi, sentool; KHM: kompem; LAO: tong; MYS: sentieh, sentol, setol, sentul, setul, setui, kechapi, ketapi; MMR: santal, thitto; PHL: santol, katul; SGP: sentul; THA: kra thon (central), tian lon, sa thon (peninsular), ma tong (northern, Udon Thani), ma tin (northern), sa-ti-ya, sa-tu (Malay-Narathiwat), sa-to (Malay-Pattani); VNM: sau chua, sau tia, sau do

Habit (above); fruits (opposite page)

about 5 cm to12 cm wide and 15 cm to 25 cm long, the base rounded and acute at the top. Inflorescences are in loose panicles, the stalks about 15 cm to 30 cm long with 5 petals.

The fruit is globose or spheroidal, somewhat variously wrinkled, 4 cm to 7.5 cm wide, yellowish to golden colored, outside very finely-shortly hairy. The pericarp is hard and tough but flexible.

The pulp containing one seed each is edible and sucked but cannot be separated from the seed. The santol is reproduced by seeds, airlayering, inarching, or by budding onto self rootstocks.

Uses: Probably the only other important edible fruit in the family Meliaceae, after lanzones, santol are favorite to be eaten fresh, either with or without peeling. However, it can also be processed for future consumption in form of jam or jelly, preserves or marmalade, candies, chutney or used for flavouring native dishes.

It is also eaten with spices or the very ripe fruit can be fermented with rice to make an alcoholic drink.

Santol has also medicinal benefits. Bitter bark, containing the slightly toxic sandoricum acid, an unnamed, toxic alkaloid, and a steroidal sapogenin, against ringworm and as potion given a woman after childbirth. Crushed leaves serves as poultice on itching skin, fever and decoction to bathe patient. Preserved pulp as an astringent. Aromatic, astringent root can be potential remedy for diarrhoea; infusion of the fresh or dried root, or the bark, relieve colic and stitch in the side; stomachic and antispasmodic and prized as a tonic after childbirth; crushed in blend of vinegar and water as a carminative and treatment for diarrhoea and dysentery. Mixed with the bark of Carapa obovata Blume, to combat leucorrhea (discharge of whitish mucus from vagina due to infection).

Further, the wood is ideal for house-posts, interior construction, light-framing, barrels, cabinetwork, boats, carts, sandals, butcher’s blocks, household utensils and carvings. When burned, the wood emits an aromatic scent. Bark used for tanning fishing lines.

Distribution and habitat: Santol is a native of Indo-China and west Malesia and is now found in naturalised or cultivated area throughout tropical Asia, particularly in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam. It has also been introduced in

tropical countries. Found also in India, the Andaman Islands, Mauritius, in Honduras, Costa Rica, and Fairchild Tropical Garden, Miami. Santol is a hardy plant and thrives without irrigation in areas with a prolonged dry season. The tree grows best in areas

with an even distribution of rainfall. It is cultivated from sea level to altitudes exceeding 1000 m. Excellent growth is assured in clay loam and sandy loam soils that are loose and friable with plenty of humus.

FRUITS

65

Myrtaceae

Syzygium jambos (L.) Alston

Common names: BRN: jambu; KHM: cahm-puu; IDN: jambu air, jambu ayer, mawar,jambu mawar, jambo kraton; LAO: chieng, kieng: MYS: jambu kelampok, jambu mawer; MMR: hnin-thi-pin, thabu-thabye, thabyu-thaby; PHL: makopa (Tagalog); SGP: jambu mawar, roseapple; THA: chomphu nam dok mai (central), farang nam (peninsular), masa mut (Nan), manam hom (northern), mahla khok lok (Mae Hong Son), ya-mupa-na-wa (Malay- Yala); VNM: ly,bo dao, roi; ENG: rose apple, malabar plum, wax apple, plum rose Description: An evergreen small to medium-sized fruit tree attaining 9 m to 12 m in height, often with low branching and a dense rounded crown with wide-spreading branches. The trunk is cylindrical, sometimes crooked, generally twisted at the base; the bark is furrowed, smooth and greyish-brown in colour. The leaves are opposite, the blade lanceolate or narrow-elliptic, tapering to a point, somewhat leathery, glossy, dark-green when mature, pinkish when young; the stalks only up to 1 cm long.

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Inflorescences are terminal or axillary, in a flat-topped open flower clusters, large, about 5 cm to 10 cm across resulting from many exserted stamens forming like a head. The fruits are rounded, edible, crispy, creamy pink to yellowish, fragrant, about 2 cm to 5 cm long, with the smell and the taste of rose water.

The seeds are subglobose, usually only one per fruit. It is propagated by seeds, sometimes by air layering and budding. The seeds are dispersed by gravity and perhaps also by rats (uphill).

Meanwhile, new foci of invasion are caused by humans (children disposing the seeds after eating) and when present, by fruit bats.

Uses: The dry crisp fruits are tasteless, highly perishable often times left for the children to pick and to eat them fresh. But it can be cooked or preserved for various home use, such as jellies. The large, hallow cavity make it ideal as stuff fruits for baking purposes. Fruit extract can be used to make a sweet smelling rose water, similar quality with that obtained from rose petal. Distilled leaves can yield yellow-coloured essential oil used in producing perfumes. The bark is a source of tannin and brown dye. Several parts such as bark, root, fruits and seeds have been utilised in home medicine (as tonic or diuretic), but large applications may be poisonous. The wood is a good source of firewood, and suitable as construction timber, also for amenity, windbreak, and erosion control. The plant is also important for beekeepers and in their honey-production business. Its regular shape, attractive foliage, and striking beauty particularly during flowering period caught one’s eye, hence much liked as ornamental species.

Photos by M. David

A

poor disperser, but a good invader. Seeds usually spread by gravity or possibly by rats, but once established, it forms monotypic stands often consisting of three distinct layers (canopy, saplings and seedlings), and can occupy all forest types including the natural forest.

Habit of Syzygium sp (above); fruits (opposite page)

Distribution and habitat: It is a native to Southeast Asia. which spread through India and South Pacific islands and is now cultivated in some parts of the tropics. Found also in Hawai, French Polynesia and Fiji. It grows in deep, loamy, well-drained soil, but it also fit on sand and limestone with very little organic matter. Although this plant requires warm and sunny location, it can tolerate and can establish under deep shade. It thrives up to about 1,200 m asl.

FRUITS

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Grain Grain

Poaceae

Oryza sativa L.

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Filipino song, Magtanim Ay Di Biro, talks of the hardships of a farmer as he toils every day in planting rice.

The whole day activity is backbreaking because of bending forward to poke a rice seedling into the mudflat by hand. A planter cannot sit or stand, and his feet are restlessly deep in the mud. But despite the hardships with planting rice, it fosters camaraderie among farmers. The song’s refrain is translated like: Let’s come together my fellow farmers Let’s stretch and work out our strengths For another day’s work.

Common names: BRN: padi; KHM: srö:w; IDN: padi (general), pari (Javanese), pare (Sundanese); LAO: khauz; MYS: padi; MMR: sabar-bin; PHL: palay; SGP: rice; THA: khao, khao chao (general), khao khai maeng da, khao kho raeng, khao niao pua (Ang Thong), khao nueng (northern), khao niao (central), bue-thu (Karen-Mae Hong Son); VNM: lua; ENG: rice

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Photo by J. MacKinnon

Planting rice is never fun Bent from morn till the set of sun Cannot stand or cannot sit

Habit of wild O. sativa (above); green grain of Oryza sp (opposite page)

Description: The rice plant is an annual grass which is capable of producing rice grain twice a year, reaching a height of 50 m to 130 cm or in deep-water varieties up to 2 m, forming small clumps. Roots are fibrous, arising from the base of the shoots. The stems are erect, composed of a series of nodes and internodes, the number of stems depend on the cultivar or variety and growing season; each node with a single leaf, sometimes with a branch (called tiller) or roots arising form the nodes; internodes are short at the base and progressively increasing in length towards the top. The leaves are in two ranks; the leaf sheaths at first enclosing each other forming a pseudostem, then later enclosing only the internode,

the blade is linear, smooth to rough to the touch, often with spiny hairs on margin. The inflorescences are in terminal branched flower clusters bearing few or many flowers or spikelets depending on cultivar. The fruits, enclosed by seed covering called palea, are green and turning yellowish-brown to brown when ripe, varying in size and shaped, egg-shaped, ellipsoid or cylindrical and when dehusked the grain of commerce is usually whitish-yellow, brown or greyish-brown colour.

Uses: Four parts of rice plants have been of use: hull, bran, straw, and grain. In great amount, hull or husk is used as packing and absorption materials to pad fragile goods during shipment. It is also a material for producing boards. It can also be used simply as fuel to small stoves and may generate electric power in large plants. To keep ice blocks from melting, small ice storage plants use rice hull for insulation. It is said that rice hull is useful for treating dysentery and diuresis.

Charred hull is used to infiltrate impurities in water, medium for hydroponics and manufacture of charcoal briquette. Ash from rice hull is used to clean discoloured teeth. It can be turned into cellulose products, such as rayon.

Rice bran is the outer covering of a grain, which is a source of fibre for good health and vitamin C that is said to prevent and cure beri-beri. It contains 14% to 17% oil called as

the rice bran oil used for cooking and as agents for anti-rust and anti-corrosive, and used in the production of livestock/poultry feeds, cosmetics, and soap.

Rice straw is food to livestock and material for bedding, boards, making paper, growing mushroom, organic manure, roof thatching and sometimes rope. In the fields, farmers make use of rice straw as the most readily material for mulching the growing small crops against direct heavy rain and sunlight.

Milled rice grain is prepared to come up with different kinds of foods. Rice is a main source of carbohydrate - the energy-building food that complements the energy requirement for the Southeast Asians to perform hard work. Simply, the usual every meal rice preparation is washing then boiling or steaming of rice grain and eaten with vegetables, fish or meat. Boiled glutinous rice grain can further be cooked into sweet meat with coconut milk and brown sugar.

Powdered rice grain is used in making rice cakes, crackers, baby foods, and cosmetics. Starch produced from broken rice is used in laundry and textile manufacturing. Rice grains can also produce wines and beers.

Below are some processes into making wine and paper out of rice plant.

Materials: ball flour (mixed with spices, herbs, yeast, fungus and bacteria), fresh water, stainless or made of clay container, steamed glutinous rice (white or black).

Photo by M. David

STICKY BREW-MAKING (Thailand experience)

GRAIN

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RICE STRAW PAPER-MAKING (Philippines experience) Materials: rice straw, starch (gawgaw), rosin size (solid resin), alum (tawas), caustic soda, okra juice, water, odium hypochlorite (bleach), dyes Tools and Equipment: sharp scissors or knife, screen box, stainless steel cauldron or drum, measuring cups, weighing scale, stove, wooden mortar and pestle, vat or basin, mold and deckle (a pair of movable rectangular wooden frames with detachable screen), cheesecloth, rolling pin, drying board (plain galvanized iron sheet)

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

SHEET FORMING PROCESS: Materials: rice straw pulp-, 1 kg; water, 50 L; starch, 100 g; rosin size, 20 g; powdered alum, 40 g; okra juice, 250 ml (1 cup)

Photo by M. David

Procedure: Mix all together the ingredients in a container with fresh water to start the fermentation process i.e. “fungus turns flour into sugar, which is developed into alcohol by yeast” and the “fermented mix will generate a sour or acidic taste with the help of bacteria”. With the process, the watery part of the fermented sticky rice will turn into alcohol. The resulting product is a “sweet and aromatic rice wine, with a 7% alcohol content, rivalling that of beer and much higher than the ready-made mixed drinks on the local market”. Alcohol can either be crystal clear or cloudy, but the former is the best, dubbed as authentic.

It stays good for a month.

To improve the product in terms of taste, aroma, and health, a rice wine-maker may opt to mix herbs like galangal, noni, garlic, and tropical fruits such as lychee, longan, banana, and even mangosteen.

Brown grain of Oryza sp

PULPING PROCESS: Materials: rice straw, 1 kg; water, 20 L; caustic soda, 180 g Procedures: 1. Cut the rice straw into 2.5 cm. Screen the straw to remove dirt.

2. In a cauldron, cook the straw with water and caustic soda for 3 hr to 4 hr. The straw is ready when it crumbles when pinched.

3. Wash the cooked straw under running water and crush it using a wooden mortar and pestle.

4. Screen the cooked straw to remove dirt. The remaining material is called the pulp.

5. Wrap the pulp with cheesecloth and squeeze out the water.

Procedures: 1. Mix the pulp with water in a vat or a large basin. For thick paper, use less water. For thin paper, use more water.

2. Add starch, rosin size, powdered alum, and okra juice (optional). Mix well.

3. Dip the mold and deckle into the vat or basin to catch as much pulp as necessary to make paper of the desired thickness.

4. Tilt the mold and deckle back and forth to spread pulp evenly.

5. Separate the deckle from the mold and lay the molded pulp on cheesecloth.

6. Cover the pulp sheet with cheesecloth and, with a rolling pin, squeeze out excess water.

7. Separate the sheet from the screen and lay it on the drying board.

8. Cover the sheet with a cheesecloth blotter and squeeze out the excess water with a rolling pin.

9. Remove the blotter or cheesecloth and let the sheet dry under the sun.

Distribution and habitat: It is widely cultivated in Southeast Asia. Rice is grown as far north as 53°N in Moho, northern China and as far south as 35°S in New South Wales, Australia. It grows on dry or flooded soil.

Horticulture Horticulture

Arecaceae

Areca catechu L.

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his palm species makes a beautiful landscape because of its feathery arching leaves pointing to the ground. The orange-red and light green fruits add beauty to the palm.

Uses: This species can be an indoor plant depending on the room size but is usually used as an ornament in any landscape of big or small area.

The fruit is used for chewing. It goes with lime and leaves of the betel pepper or Piper betle L., locally known as “ikmo” or “sirih” in the Philippines and Indonesia, respectively. Thinly sliced seeds are sprinkled with lime, wrapped with betel pepper leaf and chewed. With its narcotic taste and soothing effect, it has been used as a substitute to smoking cigars. For people in a habit of chewing it, it becomes a vice, though it is said to have harmful effect on health. One can easily determine if a person is addicted with chewing betel nut. Their teeth are stained red. A betel nutaddicted person frequently spits off.

The husk or fibre of the fruit is also used as toothbrush. A fruit that is cut across may produce short bristles used to scrape away food debris in between teeth.

Medicinally, the powdered ripe seeds are used to destroy worm parasites in humans. Young seeds are said to be purgative.

Because of its large size and toughness, leaf sheaths are used as protective cover boards for packing, hats, slippers, and paper material, and even book cover. Through ingenuity of some local people in Asia, they use the leaf sheath as a material to hasten the breaking of the nutshell of Canarium species.

Common name: BRN: pinang; IDN: pinang; MYS: pinang, pinang siri; MMR: kinthi-pin; PHL: bunga; SGP: betel nut; THA: mak, mak-mia (general), khet, phla, sa-la (Khmer), siat (Chaobon-Nakhon Ratchasima), sae (Karen-Mae Hong Son), pinae (Malay-Peninsular), ma (Chong-Trat), si-sa (Karen- northern), mak-mu (Shan-Mae Hong Son), mak-song (peninsular); VNM: cau; ENG: betel palm

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Fruits

Photos by M. David

Description: This palm reaches a height of 10 m and a diameter at breast height of 10 cm to 15 cm. It has dark-green, pinnate leaves which are about 3 m long including the stem-clasping sheath. The sheath is smooth and lighter green contrasting the leaflets and the rachis. The leaflets are opposite and folded ones, thus V-shaped in cross-section. Floriferous branches bearing only one or very few female flowers, unstalked on their basal thickened part and the paired male flowers in two vertical ranks alternate in the upper slender part. Female flowers with broadly imbricate sepals, about as broad and long as the petals. The fruits are orange-red when ripe, globose-ovoid or ovoid-ellipsoid. The seed is subglobose with a more or less flattish base.

Leaf sheath (above); habit (opposite page)

Distribution and habitat: Only known from cultivation. It is distributed throughout Malesia, Taiwan, to the Solomons and northeastern Australia, from northeast India and Sri Lanka. It grows in any soil condition but best in sandy loam.

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Leguminosae: Caesalpiniodeae

Bauhinia L.

B

auhinia species are recommended for land scaping of buffer strips around parking lots or for median strip plantings in the highway.

heels of slippers, and as firewood and for charcoal production.

The young leaves are eaten as a side-dish together with rice in Java, and are used to flavour meat and fish in the Philippines; they taste sour and are also eaten as relish. The bark is used in Timor for poulticing wounds. An infusion of fresh flowers is reported as antidysenteric. In the Philippines, leaves are used to reduce fever and as aphrodisiac.

In India, the leaves are used as disposable plates.

Description: The genus has about 300 species but only a few occur in the ASEAN region, an important species of which is B. malabarica Roxb. This is an evergreen, dioecious, small tree up to 17 m tall, in cultivation as ornamental tree. It has short bole with branches near the base, thus short and often gnarled with a diameter at breast height of 15 cm to 30 cm, seldom more. Bark is smooth, sometimes fissured, yellowish-brown in colour. The leaves are broader than long, simple, alternate, with two blunt lobes reaching one-fourth way down, dull smooth or finely hairy on either side. Inflorescences are racemose, stalkless, dense, axillary and densely-flowered; flowers brown-hairy, tube cylindrical to top-shaped, five petals, oblong to obovate, white or pale yellow colour. Fruits are a pod, closed until maturity, strap-

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Photos by M. David

Common names: BRN: tapak unta (Brunei Malay), daup-daup (Iban); KHM: choeung kôô; IDN: benculuk, kendayakan (Java), kripi (Sumba); LAO: ‘sô’m2, ‘sièo2; MMR: bwaygyin, bwechin, bwegyin; PHL: alibangbang (Bisaya, Kampampangan, Tagalog); SGP: bauhinia; THA: chongkho, salaeng phan, sieo som; VNM: mong bo, ban, tai tuong, tai voi, quach mau, canh doi, cang, cua, go; ENG: malabar bauhinia

Habit of B. blakeana (above); flowers and pod (opposite page)

shaped with long beak at the top, containing 10 to 30 seeds.

Seeds are oblong and dark brown. Propagation is by seeds, suckers, or stem cuttings.

Uses: The bright flowers of B. malabarica make it an attractive ornament. Recommended for landscaping of buffer strips around parking lots or for median strip plantings in the highway; a plant for reclaimed areas and also as shade tree.

Particularly in the Philippines, the wood of B. malabarica is used locally for temporary and interior construction and for the

Distribution and habitat: B. malabarica ranges from India through Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, the Philippines, Java, Timor, to northeastern Australia. It often occurs in areas with a distinct dry season. In Java and Thailand, it is common in teak forest and open deciduous forest, and sometimes also in savanna, usually found at 400 m in altitude; in Timor, it occurs up to 600 m, often on limestone.

In the Philippines, it is locally common on drier, hilly sites.

Although it is locally frequent, it is never dominant. The annual rainfall in its natural habitat in India varies between 1000 mm and 3000 mm.

Bauhinia is a pantropical genus. About 69 species occur naturally in Malesia, but several are commonly planted as ornamentals. Most species are climbers or shrubs, but some reach the size of a small tree. The only timber yielding species in Malesia is B. malabarica Roxb.

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Leguminosae: Papilionoideae

Cassia L.

C

assia species are well-known ornamentals planted along roadsides.

bisexual, usually large and showy; the calyx tubes short, sepals overlapping at the margin only, subequal with five petals and 10; stamens. Pods are variable, rounded in cross-section or flat, usually divided by partitions, dry, splitting or not; seeds flattened, parallel with the valves or with the partitions. Propagation is by seed or vegetative means.

Common names: KHM: bô prùk’; IDN: bobondelan (Sundanese), boking-boking (Sumatra), trengguli (Javanese); LAO: khoun loy; MYS: bebusok, busok-busok (Peninsular); MMR: mezali-gyi, peik-thingat, dan-kywe, gawkngu, pyibannyo, ngu-padamya, dan-gywe, mai-lum-awn, dangwe-gyi, ngusat-ni, mezali, kathaw-pok, nawnam, dangwe, pwegaing, kazazaw-bok; PHL: antsoan (Bikol); THA: chaiyaphruk, kalapaphruk (central), kalaphruk (northern); VNM: bo cap, muong, thao quyetminh, o moi, tra tien; ENG: golden shower, yellow shower, pink shower

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Photos by M. David

Description: Trees of this genus are small- to medium-sized, to sometimes large trees up from 25 m to 40 m tall; the bole with up to 60 cm diameter at breast height and small buttresses sometimes present. Trunks and branches of young trees are either smooth or sometimes armed; bark surfaces smooth, greyish to pale brown or reddish-brown. The leaves are compound, alternate, arranged in two ranks or spirally, paripinnate, with or without glands on petiole or rachis; with stipules. Inflorescences are racemose or paniculate, axillary, terminal or leaf-opposed. The flowers are rarely regular, rarely

Uses: Cassia is a well-known ornamental or roadside tree. It is used for intercropping systems, windbreaks, and shelterbelts. It is used as a shade tree in cocoa, coffee, and tea plantations. Wood is used for furniture, poles, small timber, and fuelwood. Ripe pods and seeds are used as laxative and purgative. Roots are used to purify wounds and ulcers. Bark and leaves can treat fungal infections and skin problems. The bark has been used for tanning leather, but the amount of tannin is comparatively low.

Leaves and flowers are used in curry dishes and production of honey.

Habit of C. fistula (above); inflorescences of C. fistula (opposite page)

Distribution and habitat: C. javanica is usually found in most open sites in the forest up to 400 m altitude, but can also occur in closed evergreen primary forest. It is often naturalised in secondary forest close to locations where it has been planted. In Java, it has been reported to thrive in fertile volcanic loams and marshy, sandy and limestone soils.

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Arecaceae

Cyrtostachys renda Blume

T

his species is one of the world’s most attractive palm.

Description: The lipstick palm is a monoecious, usually clustered, unarmed, small to medium-sized palm attaining up to 20 m to 30 m tall in its natural forest habitat, but much shorter in cultivation. The stem is straight, slender, conspicuously ringed with leaf scars, often with numerous mass of shoots and young stems of different sizes and heights around the older stems in the middle of the clump. Leaves are simple, pinnate; the sheaths tubular, clasping stem totally and then partially towards the base of the leafstalk; the sheaths and the whole length of the leaf rachises are red in colour; the leaflets entire

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and seedlings.

Uses: This palm is quite popularly used in landscape areas to give a contrast impact to the overall surroundings. This is due to its special feature especially its red leaf sheaths, petioles, and rachises. Habitually these palms are planted in rows in zig-zag pattern or regimented to give majestic avenue at the entrance area. Sometimes it designates as focus with other combination of trees and shrubs in corners or open spaces.

The split stems of C. renda are used locally to support Nypa leaf thatch and is used for flooring. The whole round stem can be used for piling.

Photos by M. David

Common names: BRN: melawaring (Brunei Malay), raring (Dusun); IDN: pinang merah (general); MYS: pinang merah (general), pinang antan (peninsular), pinang lakar (Sarawak); PHL: red palm; SGP: sealing wax palm; THA: kap daeng, ka daeng (Nakhon Si Thammarat), mak-daeng (Bangkok), mak wing (Pattani); ENG: lipstick palm, scarlet palm, sealing wax palm

and single-fold. Inflorescences are borne below the leaves and first enclosed by bracteoles until the leaves fall; the stalks are very short. Flowers are rounded in bud, with 3 sepals and 3 petals, male flowers with a superior one-celled locular, short, and recurved ovary. The fruit is small, about 18 mm in diameter, smooth, and black when ripe. The seed is also small and ellipsoid in shape. Propagation is by sucker shoots, seeds,

Young plant

ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Distribution and habitat: Southern Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, and Borneo; extensively cultivated as an ornamental throughout the Malesia region and planted in many tropical countries Most Cyrtostachys species are found in lowland rainforest, up to 500 m altitude. C. renda is characteristically found in peat-swamp forest at low altitude, where it may form a conspicuous component of the vegetation.

Habit (left); young plants in clump (above)

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Rubiaceae

Ixora L.

Common names: BRN: pecah periok (Brunei Malay), belah pinggan (Dusun); KHM: chann tanea, te prey; IDN: soka (general), ki soka (Sundanese), areng-arengan (Javanese); MYS: pechah priok, jarum-jarum, todong periok (Peninsular); MMR: ponna, pan; PHL: santan (Tagalog), o-on (Visayan); SGP: ixora; THA: kheme (general); VNM: mau don, bong trang Description: The genus Ixora are shrubs to small trees, sometimes medium-sized to 25 m tall. Bark surfaces are smooth, with corky protuberances on young bark, fissured or scaly, usually greyish-brown colour. The twigs are rounded in crosssection with closely-set leafless nodes often at points of branching. The leaves are opposite or sometimes in whorls of 3, simple, entire, broadly elliptic to linear, papery thin to leathery, the base acute to wedge-shaped, the top obtuse to acute, acuminate or caudate, smooth; the stalks usually present, the upper part concave or longitudinally grooved; the stipules coalesced at the base between the opposite stalks, topped with a sharp point. The inflorescences are in corymbs or in corymbose panicles, stalk short and straight, or long with nodding or hanging inflorescences. The flowers often 3 together, bisexual,

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

fragrant or not, the anthers mature before pistils in the same flower; the calyx divided down the base; corolla a cylindrical tube, folded in bud, spreading flat or reflexed when open, often white but sometimes pink, yellow or red. The fruits are rounded, 2-lobed drupe, red to black when ripe. Seeds are 1 to 2 kernels or stone seeds. It can be propagated by stem cuttings and seeds.

Uses: Its pink, yellow or red flowers charm moths and butterflies probing for the nectar at the corolla base, but honey-suckers may also visit the flowers, particularly the reddish ones. Some Ixora species are well known as ornamental (e.g. I. chinensis Lamk, I. coccinea L., I. javanica (Blume) DC.) commonly planted in gardens, parks, along roadsides, and as hedges.

The wood of Ixora is occasionally used, often for implements and comparatively small objects such as walking sticks, sometimes also for beams for house or building.

Leaves or flowers are used as traditional medicine to treat fever, headache, colic, dysentery and tuberculosis. Roots are used as a sedative. They are more potent and can also be used as astringent and antiseptic. Some species (I. coccinea) have shown antitumour and antimutagenic activities. The fruits of I. philippinensis Merr. are edible.

Photos by M. David

A

side from the bright colour it lends to the surroundings, the leaves and flowers of Ixora are used as traditional medicine.

Habit of Ixora sp (above); flowers of Ixora sp (opposite page)

Distribution and habitat: It is distributed throughout the tropics. The Indo-Malesian region is richest in species. In Malesia about 160 species occur; the highest number of species (about 65) is found in Borneo, most of them endemic.

Ixora species are usually confined in lowland and lower montane forest up to 1700 m altitude. Some species are also found in swampy locations in the vicinity of rivers or occasionally in rice fields (e.g., I. grandiflora).

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Melastomataceae

Medinilla magnifica Lindley

“M

agnifica” evokes the plant’s magnificent blossoms, an explosion of pink to coral-red flowers.

Common names: PHL: kapa-kapa (Tagalog); SGP: rose grape; ENG: chandelier tree, showy melastome, showy medinilla

Description: Kapa-kapa (in Filipino, denoting cape or broad wing which refers to the large leaves and the attractive large pinkish flower bracts) is an evergreen shrub or thick-stemmed epiphyte, attaining around 3 m tall with small branches and young twigs that are quadrangular in cross-section. Bark is ribbed or sometime flaking in papery thin flakes. The leaves are

simple, opposite, without stalks, strongly whitish veined emanating from the base and converging towards the top. The inflorescences are racemose or paniculate, hanging, about 30 cm long or even longer; stalk slender, quadrangular, its thickness similar almost to the end of the inflorescence axis. The flowers are coral red, whorled, 3 cm wide, supported at the base with large, long, opposite and whorled pinkish bracts; petals are 5, anthers are purple and filaments yellow. It is propagated by seeds.

Photos by J. MacKinnon

Uses: Medinilla is a valued ornamental grown as hedges or border plants in the tropics; grown in containers/pots in a greenhouse, conservatory or as a houseplant. It is also used as remedies for flesh wounds and upset stomachs. This plant won the prize as best new horticultural plant given by the Royal Horticulture Society of England in 1850.

Inflorescence of Medinilla astronoides (above); inflorescence of M. magnifica (opposite page)

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Distribution and habitat: It is native and unique to the Philippines (Luzon, Mindoro, Negros, Panay, Mindanao). It grows in lowland (300-m altitude) to lower montane (1000-m altitude) or upper montane forests up to 1400 m altitude. M. magnifica is one of 80 species of Medinilla found in the Philippines and about 400 species worldwide. The species name, magnifica, evokes the plant’s magnificent blossoms, an explosion of pink to coral-red flower/bracts.

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Orchidaceae

Paphiopedilum Pfitzer

F

rom the Greek words ‘paphius’ and ‘pedilon’, the name paphiopedilum was derived, which literally mean shoes. The orchid species of the genus Paphiopedilum are the best known species of all orchids.

to a prominent pouch. The column has two fertile anthers.

Paphiopedilum species are propagated by division. It involves finding the natural break between the two or more parts of the plant and dividing down this natural split.

Uses: Cut flowers as ornamentals which can be a hobby or big business; flowering indoor plant.

Common names: IDN: anggrek kantong semar; MMR: kunmya-san, hmwe-mintha, ngwe-na-phyu, belu-gamon, zawmokseik; ENG: lady slipper

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Photo by M. David

Description: Lady slipper is a terrestrial or growing on rocks, rarely epiphytic, sympodial orchid which is mostly less than 50 cm tall with thick horizontally spreading roots borne at the base. Leaves are folded ones horizontally, oblong, elliptic or strap-shaped, arranged in two vertical ranks, leathery, green or mottled with light green or purple markings, acute to obtuse, often 2- or 3-lobed at the top.

Flowers are one or several in an inflorescence, waxy in appearance. The upper sepal is large and erect, the lateral sepals are united to form a coalescent sepal. The spreading petals are horizontal to sometimes hanging. The lip is formed

Distribution and habitat: Most species are terrestrial in habit and are low light intensity. The natural habitat of Paphiopedilum is limited to the region stretching from India, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Malay Peninsula, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and the Philippines. The genus contains about 60 species.

Flower of Paphiopedilum sp

Paphiopedilum concolor is a native of Myanmar, Thailand, and southern Vietnam. P. javanicum are found attached to roots in detritus overlying volcanic substrates at elevations of 750 m to 2,100 m in Java, Bali, Flores, and Sumatra. Others are found in Borneo at elevations of 900 m to 1,650 m. In the Philippines, there are about 12 species, of which at least 11 are endemic.

Orchidaceae

Phalaenopsis Blume

T

he name Phalaenopsis was derived by a Blume, a Dutch botanist, who found the specimen in 1825 at eastern part of Java from the terms “Phalaenos”, which means a moth, and “opsis”, appearance.

Description: Phalaenopsis are epiphytic orchids. The leaves are more or less oblong, sometimes elliptic; the upper surface of the blade rather deeply depressed to almost folded, leathery, usually bright shiny surface, dark green, other species green mottled with dark spots above and purplish beneath. The flowers are arranged on inflorescences, on stalks that gradually lengthen as the flowers appear on the rachis in succession. At the time the flower bud emerges, it appears without a stalk, but the stalk develops and continues to grow longer, reaching up to 2.5 cm in length. Sepals and petals are white but sometimes vary from white to yellowish green or pink to purple, marked with longitudinal stripes consisting of numerous small brownish purple spots which give the whole flower an attractive appearance. Flowers drooping and appear not fully

Photo by M. David

Common names: BRN: anggrek bulan; IDN: bunga anggrek bulan; MYS: anggrek bulan; MMR: pi-don-kya, leik-pya-pan, hla-ei-ka-ri; PHL: mariposa, tiger orchid; SGP: moth orchids; VNM: lan ho, diep, sung nai, buom man; ENG: moth orchid, moon orchid

Flowers of Phalaenopsis sp

opened. Fruits a capsule, 7 cm to 9 cm long, about 3 cm to 4 cm in diameter and contain numerous tiny seeds. It can be propagated by sexual and asexual reproduction; tissue culture, and an alternative method called Operative Propagation of Phalaenopsis.

Uses: Cut flowers as ornamentals can be a hobby or big

business. The blooms last for several weeks.

Distribution and habitat: Phalaenopsis is found in India, throughout Southeast Asia and northern Australia. They are mainly of low elevations (500 m altitude) but some species can occur at 1, 500-m altitude.

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Leguminosae: Papilionoideae

Strongylodon macrobotrys A. Gray

I

ts hue is probably the rarest in the world of flowers. Over collection for ornamental purposes poses a threat to this species.

Common names: PHL: tayabak (Tagalog); SGP: jade vine; THA: phuang yok (Bangkok); ENG: jade vine, emerald creeper Description: The jade vine is an evergreen twining vine attaining up to 10 m long. Stems are initially glossy, purplegreen, hardening to black-brown with finely peeling ashy bark, and about 2.5 cm in diameter. Leaves are compound, trifoliate, with three entire oblong leaflets. Inflorescences are hanging, axillary, cylindrical raceme of about a meter long; the flowers arranged in pairs or in whorls of 3. Flowers long-stalked, clawshaped, in huge hanging clusters; corolla waxy aquamarine to luminous jade green; wings rounded to one-third of the length of the keel; the keel tapering finely with strongly incurved to hooked top. Pods are large, somewhat slightly flattened lateopening capsule bearing 3 to 10 large brown seeds. Seeds are said to be short-lived with a viability of only two weeks. It can be propagated by seeds and stem cuttings.

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Photo by M. David

viewed from below. Jade vine is collected for ornamental purposes; and makes beautiful leis and garlands.

Photo by J. MacKinnon

Uses: Jade vine is a valued ornamental plant. It is grown in tropical landscapes, trained to a stout trellis, arch or pergola. The pendulous festoons of blue green blossoms are spectacular when

Fruit showing seeds

Inflorescence

Distribution and habitat: Native to the Philippines (Luzon, Mindoro); cultivated elsewhere. First discovered on Mt Makiling, in Luzon Island. It thrives in humid forests and ravines from 700m to 1,000 m altitude. It is a rare and an endangered species because of over-collection in the wild. Jade vine is now protected in its natural environment.

Orchidaceae

Vanda Jones ex R. Br.

V

anda species blooms as many as three times a year and is highly prized for its variety of colours, duration, and frequency of flowering.

Description: Vanda is a genus of about 40 species and several varieties that are monopodial, mostly epiphytic orchids.

Stems are rounded in cross-section, generally more or less a centimetre in diameter, reaching to 2 m tall if not being topped-cut to produce another plant and for branch shoot production. Roots are somewhat whitish, green and shiny; loosely set, attaching to structures or aerially free. The leaves are alternate, arranged in two ranks, strap or sword-like, curving outward, disposed closer together towards the top, rather loosely set below. The inflorescences are a raceme, axillary, few flowered; the stalk green and smooth; flowers fragrant or not, of many colons and shapes. It is propagated by stem cuttings i.e., top-cuts or branch shoots, hybridization, tissue culture or in the wild by tiny seeds.

Uses: Whole plant used as ornamental, collector’s item, and propagated for cut flower trade.

Photo by M. David

Common name: BRN: orkid vandal; vanda, anggrek vandal; MMR: moe-thuza, nan-nyunt-new, moe-lon-hmaing; PHL: waling-waling, vanda; SGP: vandas; VNM: lan hue da, vanda

Habit of V. sanderiana

Distribution and habitat: Widely spread throughout Asia, being found in India, China, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Malay Peninsula, Borneo, Indonesia, the Philippines, New Guinea, and northern Australia. Most of these orchids have been grown and

hybridised in the Southeast Asia for many years. Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, and Philippines are the countries where one finds these varieties grown in large areas.

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Medicine Medicine

Zingiberaceae

Amomum villosum Lour.

T

he Amomum fruit is pungent in taste and warm in nature. Its therapeutic action is related to the channels of the spleen, stomach, and kidney.

Common names: IDN: kapulaga, kepillaga; LAO: hmak hneng; MMR: xanthoid; THA: reo dong (Trat); VNM: sa nham, me, tre ba, duong xuan sa; ENG: amomum, white cardamom Description: White cardamom is a large herb attaining a height of 300 cm and with thick rhizomes. The leaves are narrowly ovate-lanceolate, the apex with usually narrowed acuminate top. The inflorescences coming out of the rhizomes are short-stalked of about 8 cm long with few flowers grouped at the top, supported by membranous bracts and tubular bracteoles at the base. The flowers are tubular with the corolla longer than the calyx, the largest petal called labellum is spoon-shaped to almost rounded with a concave and emarginated apex, white and with a prominent mid vein; anthers with a 3-lobed appendage with ear-shaped side lobes. The fruits are reddish-brown,

rounded, up to 2 cm long, covered by hairs that are bent alternately in opposite directions, rather tough when opened. This is propagated by cuttings from stolon and rhizomes collected from plants in natural forest. It is also cultivated in commercial quantities.

Uses: White cardamom is a valuable medicinal plant in southwest China because it is an important ingredient of traditional Chinese medicine. Seed pods are used to treat indigestion (dyspepsia), diarrhoea, flatulence, toothache, and as febrifuge (removes fever) and antiseptic; as carminative and purgative. It removes dampness, warms the spleen and stomach, arrests vomiting and diarrhoea, and prevents miscarriage. Similarly the white cardamom oil (from the seeds) is a pleasant volatile oil that promotes appetite. It is also chewed like nuts, as a breath and tooth cleaner.

White cardamom is also a popular spice worldwide. In northern Europe the white cardamom is used to season baked goods such as Christmas stollen, cakes, cookies, muffins, and buns. It is used in making Dutch windmill biscuits and Scandinavian-style cakes and pastries and in the

liqueur akvavit. Stored in a glass jar, cardamom pods will stay fresh indefinitely. Shelled or decorticated, cardamom seeds are inexpensive and flavourful, but sometimes need to be crushed or ground before use. Ground cardamom has an intensely strong flavour and is easy to use (especially in baking, where the fine powder is desirable). It is also consumed as pickles, especially pickled herring; in punches and mulled wines; sometimes with meat, poultry, and shellfish. It also flavours custards and some Russian liqueurs.

In India, it features in curries, is essential in pilaus (rice dishes) and gives character to 3 dishes. Cardamom is often included in Indian sweet dishes and drinks. It also provides flavours in Arab and Turkish coffee. Chinese use powdered cardamom sprinkled on cooked cereal to correct gluten intolerance in children.

Distribution and habitat: White cardamom is found in southern China, Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar, and India. The plant thrives in forest, often in mountainous areas and usually in wet soils. It can be grown under tree crops or on cleared ground under natural forest canopy.

Habit (opposite page) Photo by J. MacKinnon

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MEDICINE

93

Clusiaceae

Calophyllum inophyllum L.

T

he name Calophyllum means “beautiful leaf,” from the Greek words, kalos-beautiful and phullon-leaf. No wonder, the tree is really associated with beauty being the best source of famous tamanu oil which is renowned for its remarkable healing properties on wounds, including severe cuts and burns. It is also suitable for general skin care and cosmetic purposes. In ancient times, Polynesian women are noted for their wonderful complexions, which they attributed to their daily use of tamanu oil as a moisturizing, natural cosmetic on their faces, bodies, and hair.

Common names: BRN: penaga laut, bintagor laut (Brunei Malay); IDN: njamplung, dingkaran; MYS: bitangor laut, penaga laut, penaga; MMR: hpang, pon-nyet; PHL: palo maria, bitaog, bangkalan; SGP: Alexandrian Laurel; THA: kra thing, kra thueng, ka ka thing, ka kra thueng (central), thing (Krabi), nao wakan (Nan), saraphi thale (Prachuap Khiri Khan), saraphi naen (northern); VNM: mu u; ENG: Alexandrian laurel, Borneo mahogany, ballnut, tamanu tree, beauty leaf, sweet-scented calophyllum Description: This is a medium- to large-sized tree which attains a height of 25 m to 35 m and a diameter at breast height of 150

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cm, usually with a short bole and low big branches and a dense crown. The bark outside is rough, cracky, sometimes with shallow longitudinal grooves, dark brown to blackish. The ultimate twigs are 4-angled to rounded in cross-section. The leaves are simple, opposite, leathery, entire, the blade elliptic, oval, obovate or oblong, generally cuneate at the base and rounded, retuse or subacute at the apex with many ladder-like veins. The inflorescences are axillary, generally unbranched, occasionally with 3-flowered branches. The flower have 8 to 13 tepals, that is the parts cannot be distinguished as being either sepals or petals, showy, fragrant with numerous yellow stamens. The fruits are in small bunches, usually spherical to obovoid, with thin and smooth outer layer, float on water, the reason why the trees are commonly found in beaches but also found inland. There is only one seed for each fruit. The fruits are dispersed by sea currents, and also by fruit bats. It can be propagated by seeds and cuttings.

Uses: Aside from timber, the tree produces tamanu oil, the so called “Sacred oil of Ancient Tahitian”. Thousands of years ago, in remote islands in the South Pacific, the natives found a large, unusual tree growing wild near ocean lagoons. In Tahiti, they called it the “ati” tree. Several species of the tree grow wild in the tropical climes in the Pacific. In Tahiti, the natives named it Tamanu Oil and they preferred variety of ati tree, C. inophyllum,

which flourishes in Vanuatu. The species is regarded as the prime species among all others to give the best quality oil. Outstandingly, the oil is a potent healing agent, which has a unique capacity to promote the formation of new tissue, thereby accelerating wound healing and the growth of healthy skin: this process is known as cicatrisation. In fact, the oil appears to be one of the most effective known cicatrising agent in nature. It was so highly regarded, the natives everywhere protected the trees, carefully harvested and dried the nuts, and extracted the tamanu oil— all under the watchful eyes of their native healers and kings. The natives believed tamanu oil was a “sacred” gift of nature.

Tamanu oil is ideal for general skin and cosmetic purposes. The oil’s unusual absorption, its mild and pleasant aroma, and its luxurious feel make it ideal for use in lotions, creams, ointments and other cosmetic products. The Polynesia women also use it for the care of their babies’ skin, so sensitive to rashes and other skin problems. Tamanu oil is also widely used as a traditional topical aid. In Pacific island folk medicine, the oil is applied liberally to cuts, scrapes, burns, insect bites and stings, abrasions, acne and acne scars, psoriasis, diabetic sores, anal fissures, sunburn, dry or scaly skin, blisters, eczema, herpes sores, athletes foot, and the reduction of foot and body odour, insomnia and hair loss. They also massage the oil into the skin as they believe it helps to relieve neuralgia, rheumatism, and

cosmetic purposes.

Other than these, the ethyl ether of the oil is used as an intramuscular injection to relieve the pain and symptoms of leprosy. The oil also treats diabetic sores, psoriasis, and hemorrhoids; combat head lice, use after shaving, relieve sprains, eliminate dandruff, among others.

Fascinatingly, other than being a major timber (construction, furniture and cabinet work, cartwheel hubs, vessels, musical instruments, canoes and boats) species, the tree has other value. For instance, the bark is used in tannery and fragrant flowers are used in bouquets and wreaths. The oil is used as illuminant and making soap and varnish. Round shell of seeds as containers for ‘buri sugar’ sold as confection. Ball nut is a useful tree for coastal and esplanade plantings, serves as shade, shelter, and windbreaks. It is also a reforestation and afforestation species. Finally, the fruit is edible.

Photo by J. MacKinnon

sciatica. Oil of tamanu possesses antibacterial and antiinflammatory activities.

In the early 1920s, tamanu oil caught the attention of medical research. The oil has been studied in hospitals and by researchers in Europe, Asia, and the Pacific islands. And now, there is demand for it as an ingredient for moisturizer and other

Fruit and leaves

Distribution and habitat: It is indigenous in Southeast Asia to tropical coast, in the Pacific (Polynesian Islands), India to East Africa, northern Australia, central and northern Queensland.

C. inophyllum is often common in seashore/sandy beaches but is sometimes found inland on sandy soils up to 200 m altitude and tolerant to salt. It prefers partial shade or partial sun to full sun; soil should be wet.

The Tamanu nut is a botanical oddity. When the fruits of the tree are collected and cracked open, the blond nut kernel inside contains no apparent oil. But when the kernels are sundried on a rack for 1 mo to 2 mo, they turn a deep chocolate brown colour, and become sticky with a rich, pleasant-smelling oil. Using a simple screw press, the oil is then squeezed from the dark kernels. The resulting oil of Tamanu is dark green and luxurious. Though oil of Tamanu is thick and rich, once it is applied to the skin it is readily and completely absorbed, leaving no oily residue.

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Apiaceae

Centella asiatica (L.) Urb.

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Common names: BRN: pegaga; KHM: trachiek kranh; IDN: daun kaki kuda, pegagan, antanan gede; LAO: phak nok; MYS: pegaga; MMR: min-kuabin; PHL: takip-kohol, tapingandaga (Tagalog), hahang-halo (Bisaya); SGP: pegaga; THA: bua bok (central), pa-na-e-kha- do (Karen-Mae Hong Son), phak waen (peninsular), phak nok (northern); VNM: rau mas, t[is]ch tuy[ees]t th[ar]o; ENG: Asiatic pennywort Description: A small perennial herb, creeping with long stolons (up to 2.5 m long), rooting at the nodes. Leaves in rosettes, simple, 1 cm to 7 cm in diameter, coarsely and shallowly toothed, 2 cm to 5 cm long and usually broader than long, palmately veined and subglabrous. Inflorescence an axillary simple umbel, 1 cm to 7 cm long, flowers 5-merous with roundish to broadly obovate, pinkish-purple petals. Fruit oblate-rounded, 4 mm to 5 mm broad and 3 mm high, 7- to 9ribbed, strongly laterally compressed, pubescent when young but often glabrescent. Seed laterally compressed. Asiatic pennywort grows and flowers year round. It is also easily propagated vegetatively by runner which root on the nodes, although reproduction by seed is possible.

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Photos by M. David

s the name of species implies, both scientific (Centella asiatica) and English (Asiatic pennywort), this species is a ‘real’ Asian.

Leaves (above); habit (opposite page)

Uses: It is basically used for medicinal purposes by southern Asians, Indians, and Chinese for many centuries now. The plant has tonic and cooling properties, which is used to treat skin diseases and problems such as wounds, burns, keloids, and slowhealing wounds, to name a few. The leaves, fresh juice, and a decoction, is applied to affected body area. It is said as an effective topical medicine to slow-healing wound.

The medical use of Asiatic pennywort has been proven within and outside Asia. Research information on its medical use has been documented in literatures.

Centella has even been used as ‘food for the brain’ either to prevent nervous breakdown or after a nervous breakdown to rebuild energy reserves. Due to its energising effect on the cells of the brain, it relieves high blood pressure, mental fatigue, senility, and helps the body defend itself against various toxins.

It can also be taken orally. It is believed to relieve the symptoms of venous and lymphatic vessel including arthritis pain, heal enlargement of an organ due to increase size of its cells (hypertrophy) and treat skin ulcers, dysentery, problem on producing/flowing of milk and epilepsy. It works as a blood purifier and in strengthening the heart, as well as with bowel problems, rheumatism, skin problems, and also promotes blood circulation in the lower limbs and reduces the pain and swelling due to phlebitis. The test in India using Asiatic pennyworth as one ingredient of anti-epileptic syrup, resulted to a significant antiepileptic effect to rats. In Vietnam, it is one ingredient in preparing pills to treat senility problem and acute infective hepatitis.

Most Southeast Asians, eat the whole plant as vegetable, cooked or raw. With its slightly bitter taste, most Indo-Chinese people used it as an ingredient in softdrinks by diluting the extracts with water and sugar. Interestingly, in the Philippines it is reported to be one of the main pollen sources for honey bees.

Distribution and habitat: It is distributed in Southeast Asia and in other pantropical regions and in subtropical regions. It occurs in areas where there is light or slightly shaded, damp fertile soils, stream banks, and in open grasslands up to 2500 m altitude. It also occurs in a variety of open situations, both coastal and inland.

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Cucurbitaceae

Coccinia grandis (L.) Voigt Common names: IDN: pepasan, papas an, bolu teke; KHM: slĂśk baahs; LAO: tamling; MYS: pepasan, papas an; PHL: tamling; THA: khae-do (Karen-Mae Hong Son), phak khaep (northern), phak tamlueng (central); VNM: manh ba; ENG: ivy gourd, scarlet gourd, scarlet-fruited gourd Description: Scarlet gourd is a vigorous climbing, dioecious, perennial, vine, slender stemmed and with generally underground caudex. Roots and stems are succulent but older stems become woody with large, tuberous roots. Tendrils are simple and axillary. The leaves are alternate, simple, smooth or hairless, ovate palmately shallowly lobed, deeply heart-shaped at the base, surfaces glabrous or scaly, with 3 to 8 glands near the base; margins denticulate; petiole 1 cm to 5 cm long. Uniquely, it is distinguished by its five-point, palm-shaped-leaves. The flowers are white, large, about 4 cm across, star-shaped distinguish this weed from other vines. Male and female flowers grow on separate plants. The fruits are berry, small, up to 5 cm long, ellipsoid-oblong or cylindrical, smooth, turning soft and bright red when ripe. Seeds are sterile, numerous pale, flattened. It is in flower from August to September. It propagates by vines or cuttings and seeds. Ivy gourd primarily spread by rats and birds

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that eat the fruit and seed and also probably by feral pigs. The shoot tips are used in Asian cooking, hence, humans, who plant it for food or ornamental purposes also contribute to the movement of this weed to new locations and islands.

as a damaging environmental weed in the tropics and a weed problem in irrigated plantation crops. Further, ivy gourd may act as a reservoir of ring spot virus that infects both other cucurbits and papaya.

But even so, this weed remains a love food item in Asian cooking. For instance the young leaves and long slender stem tops (shoots) are the most nutritious parts, and cooked and eaten as a potherb or added to soups or just eaten raw as in salads.

Young and tender green fruits are eaten raw in salads or cooked and added to green curries, soups and stews to enhance flavourings and colours; made into candies, chips and pickles.

Ripe scarlet fruit is fleshy and sweet, readily eaten as well.

Medicinally, the juice of the roots and leaves is used in the treatment of diabetes. Leaf juice to treat earache. The leaves are used as a poultice in treating skin eruptions. Likewise, the plant is a laxative. It is also used internally in the treatment of gonorrhoea. The aqueous and ethanolic extracts of the plant have shown hypoglycaemic principles.

Uses: Consider as noxious weed, ivy gourd is a vine that is capable of smothering forests and desirable plants. Growing aggressively and vigorously, this vine forms a dense canopy smothering vegetation, grounds, fences, utility lines and forests in low elevation areas. This thick covering chokes out the sunlight to anything below. Hence, economically, it is considered

Photos by M. David

I

vy gourd- is it the solution or the problem? It is a noxious weed, yet a medical treasure.

Leaves and flowers (above); fruit (opposite page)

Distribution and habitat: Present in Asia, Africa, Australia, Fiji, West Indies, South America, and Hawaii, Texas, Caribbean, Saipan, and India. It thrives in waste places, canefields, roadsides near sea level; also in woodland, sunny edge and by walls. The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. It cannot grow in the shade.

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Dilleniaceae

Dillenia indica L.

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isted as one of the famine foods, Dillenia indica possesses a lemony taste.

Description: A medium- to large-sized evergreen tree reaching up to 40 m tall and up to 120 cm in diameter at breast height.

The trunk is usually crooked and branchless for up to 15 m with smooth outside bark that peel soft in small scales, orange brown to dark orange displaying small buttresses or none at all. The leaves are simple, alternate, the leaf black oblong about 8 cm to 40 cm x 4 cm to 15 cm, the margin slightly to distinctly toothed, the petiole up to 15 cm long, with many conspicuous ladder-like side veins, shiny dark green above, the leaves grouped at the top of twigs. Inflorescences are terminal, few-flowered, flowers large, fragrant, opened about 20 cm in diameter, sepal are 5 and are persistent, the petals also 5 overlapping and deciduous, white; the stamens are in 2 distinct groups, the inner ones large; anthers without acumen, opening by pores. The fruits are not opening by valves, globose, 12 cm to 15 cm in diameter, with a

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Photo by M. David

Common names: BRN: simpur; IDN: simpur air, sempur cai, sempu; KHM: ‘san; MYS: simpoh; MMR: thabyu; PHL: India katmon, katmon, handapara (Tagalog); THA: ma tat (central), som pru, san kwang, san tha, san-yai (Surat Thani), san pao (Chiang mai), saen (Na Khon Si Thammarat, Trang); VNM: so ba; ENG: hondapara tree, chulta, elephant apple, Indian catmon

Habit of Dillenia sp (above); fruit and leaves (opposite page)

protective greenish-yellowish covering, edible. The seeds are numerous, black, flattering, with hairy margin and without aril.

It can be propagated by seeds, but with difficulty from cuttings.

Uses: Dillenia indica is listed as one of the minor commercial timbers by PROSEA. However, this species is also known as

both medicinal and food items. In fact, the flower can be eaten, particularly during lean period, gaining the title “famine food.” Unripe fruit can be pickled and cooked; while the ripe fruit can be eaten raw, with its sweet sour taste like that of the lemon. The fruits are also eaten in curries or jellies. Medicinally, the unripe fruit serves as laxative and for stomach ache, while the fruit juice as cooling beverage for fever and as cough mixture. Fruits mixed with sugar are used against coughs; also fruits rubbed in water serves as soap and as shampoo. The barks and leaves are used as astringent. Meanwhile, stems and branches as source of firewood and the timber is used as simpoh, particularly in interior construction. Leaves used in making leaf-cups and plates. The plant is also suitable for ornamental purposes but not in the roadside as it bears heavy fruits that may fall off and cause freak accident.

Distribution and habitat: India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, IndoChina, southern China, Thailand, Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Borneo and Java (Indonesia). Sometimes found in area out of the natural distribution for ornamental reason, such as in the Philippines. D. indica occurs in evergreen forest or tropical rainforest, often along rivers, in Java especially in teak forest, up to 1100-m altitude. It can be grown on many types of soils, but does better on acidic sandy loams.

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Photo by J. MacKinnon

Dioscoreaceae

Dioscorea hispida Dennst.

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poisonous tuber, but a saviour during famine period. It is the only species under the genus Dioscorea in which most of the leaves have only 3 leaflets.

Common names: BRN: ubi gadong, ubi belayar (Brunei Malay); IDN: gadung; LAO: koi vine; PHL: nami, bagai, kayos, kurot; THA: kloi, man kloi (central), kloi khao niao, kloi hua niao (Na Khon Ratchasima), kloi nok, koi (northern), khli (Karen-Mae Hong Son); ENG: Asiatic bitter yam Description: This plant is a long climber with nasty thorns and a fibrous root system, some of which develop into small round tubers when young and elongate as they grow bigger. The tubers are brown covered on the outside by fibrous rootlets. The leaves are mostly trifoliate and spirally thorny, the blades rather thin, short stalked, the two side-leaflets with inequilateral base, the third leaflet with cuneate vase, all deeply sunken tri-nerves above. Male inflorescences are spike-like, up to 50 cm long. The female inflorescences are solitary from upper leaf axils. The fruits are large woody, honey-coloured, with three wings. The seeds have also wings. Flowers during April to May while fruiting is between July to September. It can easily be propagated from portions of the tubers.

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Uses: As a traditional remedy for piles the tuber is washed and then scraped into a small clay-pot of water. An egg is put into the water, which is then brought to the boil. The cooked egg is consumed. The tuber is also grated and applied to skin to reduce swelling from an insect bite or sting. In Indonesia, it is used as poultice. In Indonesia and China, grated tuber is applied for the beginning leprosy, skin disease and corm, calluses and whitlow of feet. It is also applied on syphilitic sores, together with the tuber of Smilax china. In Thailand, slices of these tubers are also applied topically to relieve abdominal spasms and colic, and to remove pus from wounds. In the Philippines and China, the tuber is used for arthritis and rheumatism, and for cleaning maggot-infested wounds of animals. The tuber is considered poisonous and used for stupefying fish or poisoning arrowheads. Apiece of tuber the size of an apple is sufficient to kill a man in 6 hr, the first effects being a feeling of discomfort in the throat, which intensifies to a burning sensation, followed by giddiness, the vomiting of blood, a sensation of suffocation, drowsiness and exhaustion. Further, in Malaysia it has been traditionally used as an antiseptic due to its poisonous constituent. The toxicity has been attributed to an alkaloid known as dioscorine. The effect of such contituents is paralysis of the central nervous system.

In the Philippines, it was reported that the indigestion of

wild yums, such as D. hispida can cause death. However, some procedures need to be done to remove its toxicity. The tubers after grating, repeated washing and soaking and boiling can be eaten and serves as alternative food during famine. In fact, the Department of Agriculture and the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources Research and Development have recommended the wide-scale planting of wild yam as an alternative yet reliable source of carbohydrates as a stopgap measure to cope with famine. They even developed methods of detoxification of the said yum to make fit for human consumption.

Fascinatingly, the yam possesses an insecticidal property as well. A study done by Banaag et al (1998), look into the effect of the D. hispida against diamond back moth which happened to be an agricultural problem.

Distribution and habitat: Occurs naturally from India and southern China throughout Southeast Asia to New Guinea. It is widely distributed and is often found in old lowland secondary forest, scrub forests, forest margins; near sea level to 1500 m. It thrives well even under adverse environmental conditions and grows abundantly in most Philippine forest and hillsides. It grows well on moist clay loam under shade. The plant is now listed by IUCN as vulnerable.

Habit and rootcrops (inset) Photos by M. David

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Convallariaceae

Dracaena cambodiana Pierre ex Gagnep

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his is a rare and endemic medicinal plant, which is prized also as an ornamental. The mythical name “Dragon’s Blood tree” was given to it due to the red sap emanating from the plant.

Accordingly, it is used in the ancient world as a valuable medication. In fact, Roman gladiators recognised it as a medicine for attaining invulnerability. Also, ancient Egyptian used it during embalming process and considered it as part of any witchcraft toolkit.

A film entitled “Socotra, The Island of the Dragon’s Blood Tree”, was made to present the story of this remote island which is one of the least known enigmas of Yemen and the world of today. This place in Yemen is said to abound with this plant species, hence the title.

branched and the branches found only near the top. The leaves do not have the stalk but instead the base clasp the robust branch and when it falls, leaves a distinct leaf scar; spirally arranged and grouped at the top of branches, simple, entire, usually smooth, linear or sword-like with a sharp terminal point.

The inflorescences are in simple to branched raceme or panicle, about 30 cm to 40 cm long, smooth or subglabrous. The flowers are in clusters of 3 cm to 7 cm, jointed quite apart, the perianth greenish or pale yellow, about 6 mm to 7 mm long. The fruit is a berry, globose, around 1 cm in diameter, 1to 3-seeded.

Description: This is a palm-like small tree or shrub reaching only from 3 m to 10 m tall with rugged and sturdy greyish trunk. The stem is usually few-

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Uses: In the old times, the antique world used it as antiseptic ointment for wounds. Meanwhile, Roman gladiators found it as a medicine of invulneribility. The ancient Egyptian used it for embalming process. The plant supports blood circulation, dissolves blood clots, eases pain. Used to prevent blood clotting during surgery in Chinese’s hospitals. Because of such function, the plant is almost extinct in China and programs for saving the species in plantations are already on the way.

Further, it’s red sap made it ideal as stains for violins. It is also use as ornamental both for home and office plantings and in floral arrangement. The dried resin can be used medicinally as a substitute for that of Dracaena cochinchinensis.

Photo by J. MacKinnon

Common name: VNM: huyet grae, trom dua, xo nha, phat du com bot, long huyet; ENG: dragon’s blood tree

Propagation is by seeds, tip cuttings, root cuttings, air layering, root stem sections, or suckers.

Habit of Dracaena sp (above); fruits of Dracaena sp (opposite page)

ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Distribution and habitat: A native of China, but also found in Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam, Magadascar , tropical Africa or Guinea. Grows on rocky limestone areas, in forests, dry and sandy soils; near sea level to 300 m but rare in many places due to over harvesting. In fact, it is now protected in China. It requires moderate water and full sun or light shade.

Photo by M. David

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Simaroubaceae

Eurycoma longifolia Jack

Common names: BRN: tongkat ali, langir siam, pasak bumi (Brunei Malay), binakalud, teratus (Dusun), singkajap (Iban); IDN: babi kurus, tungke ali, pasak bumi; MYS: tongkat ali; MMR: bittu bark; SGP: tongkat ali; THA: krung badan (Surat Thani), kha nang , cha nang (Trat), trueng badan (Pattani), tuwu-wo-wing (Malay-Narathiwat), tung so, hae phan chan (northern), pla lai phueak (central), phiak (peninsular), yik bo thong, yik mai thueng, Ian don(northeastern), li phueak (Trang) Description: A flexible-stemmed unbranched or with a few ascending branches shrub or tree which bear male and complete flowers on an individual, each final twig topped with umbrellalike rosette of leaves. The leaves are compound, inparipinnate, about 100 cm long, the leaflets are lanceolate to obovatelanceolate, 5 cm to 20 cm by 1.5 cm to 6 cm. The inflorescences are racemose, sparsely branched and few-flowered; flowers are hairy, purplish, bell-like, petals are ovate to lanceolate or obovate-oblong, 4.5 mm to 5.5 mm by 2 mm to 3 mm, hairy on both surfaces, style rather long with a peltate 5- to 6-lobed stigma, raised about 1 mm above the carpels. The fruits 10 mm to 20 mm by 5 mm to 12 mm, borne in a large dangling

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

bunches, normally in groups of 3, oblong, turn red to black when ripe. Its peak flowering season is from June to July and with peak fruiting in September. The species can be propagated by seed.

Uses: E. longifolia has been much wanted for its superior medicinal properties which has been used for generations in Southeast Asia. It is classified as a superior herb having ancient reputation as aphrodisiac (agent that stimulates sexual desire)

Photos by V. Lamxay

E

urycoma longifolia herbs- the greatest gift of nature to adult men and known as the male high potency herb.

Roots of E. harmandiana

and similar to Ginseng, has been noted to have positive action on hormonal system, increasing stamina and enhancing vitality.

Every part of the tree is bitter and considered by natives as medicine. The roots of the bark is used to treat fever, as tonic (medicine to increase strength and gives vigor) after childbirth, pounded and applied as a poultice for headache, on wound, ulcers and syphilitic sores. Further, in Malay Peninsula it remedies intestinal worms while in Lampung and Belitung it is used as a medicine for dysentery. Root has active compounds which are effective against malarial parasite. Extracts of E. longifolia roots have been reported to possess anti-ulcer, antipyretic (against fever) and cytotoxic (toxic to cell). Meanwhile, the whole plant are noted to treat diarrhoea (frequent and watery bowel movements), gastritis and headache. In Sabah and Kalimantan, a decoction of the bark is drunk to relieve pain in the bones, and a decoction of the leaves is used for washing itches.

In Vietnam, the flowers and fruits serve as a medicine for treating dysentery while the Malays use the paste of the plant to relieve headache, stomach ache, pain caused by syphilis, and many other general pains. In Brunei, the leaves are eaten raw to cure stomachache while the bitter constituents of the root are known to provoke vomiting, hence used for such purpose. It also fights high blood pressure, relief back pain, faded aging spots, create better digestion/appetite and improve immune system.

A unique use of this plant is that of the Sakai ethnic group

in Sumatra who utilised the plant as an amulet to protect them against smallpox virus. In some areas in Sumatra where it is employ medicinally, there is much superstitions related to harvesting of the plant. Accordingly, one must conduct harvesting quietly and respectfully, to assure the beneficial effect of the plants will not be lost. Further, the most effective benefits will be obtained if the harvesters back is turned while pulling out the plant.

However, recently the depleting wild population of the E. longifolia is becoming a great concern, particularly the aspect of its protection. The increase in the demand for traditional medicines, “jamu” also increase the collection of roots and plant parts directly from the wild and without any effort for establishing plantations. “Jamu” is an Indonesian word which translates as “herbal remedies used internally and externally for health and beauty.” Hence, “jamu” manufacturers need to be responsible for establishing plantations to sustain the future needs of the industry. In fact, the plant has now been placed on the list of protected plants in Malaysia due to the rampant and unlicensed harvestings in the jungles of Malaysian Borneo (Sarawak state).

Distribution and habitat: Found in Malaysia, Indochina, Southern Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo, Sumatra and the Philippines. E. longifolia is common in the understorey of primary and secondary forest on a wide range of soils and is locally abundant. Often found singly in open wasteland, in sandy soil below 1200 m or heathland, sometimes occurs in poor dry soils either in the open ground or under the taller canopy of the secondary forest.

Habit of E. harmandiana

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Cucurbitaceae

Momordica charantia L.

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Common names: BRN: peria; KHM: mreah; IDN: paria, pare, papari; LAO: ’hail’, ‘phak’ha, sail; MYS: peria, peria laut, periok; MMR: hkaw-hka, kyet-hin-khar; PHL: ampalaya (Tagalog); SGP: peria; THA: mara (general), phak hoei (Song Khla), phak hai (Na Khon Si Thammarat), ma roi ru (central, peninsular), mahoi, mahai (northern), su-pha-su, su-pha-de (Karen-Mae Hong Son); VNM: muop dang, kho qua; ENG: bitter gourd, bitter cucumber, balsam pear Description: Bitter gourd is a monoecious and annual vine which reach 5 m long. The stem is 5-ridged and climbs to the trellises and other structures. The leaves are palmately and deeply 5- to 6-lobed, the base deeply cordate, margin tooth, blade smooth or with fine hairs. The flowers are solitary; the male and female flowers are found in the same plant with a corolla about 2 cm to 3.5 cm in diameter across, both having apical bracts which are longer in mallet than in female ones, but

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Photo by M. David

omordica is a Latin word that means “to bite” which refers to the jagged edges of the leaf, appearing as if they are bitten. This plant is known for its numerous medicinal properties for cure of diabetes, cancer and many infectious diseases as well as a promising weapon against human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) that causes acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS).

Fruit

the flower stalks are longer in females than in male ones, The fruits are variable in length depending on the cultivar but all are narrower towards the stalk, outside is warty, without hairs, green, when ripe orange yellow, the pulp inside orange when ripe, with bright red seed covering enclosing the seed. Seeds are numerous, flattish, brown, the seed coat ornamented. Propagated by seed and underground stems.

Uses: One may not like its bitter taste, but bitter melon or gourd is relatively a common food item. The unripe fruit is consumed as vegetable, salad and pickle. In the Philippines, it is sautéed in onion, garlic, tomato and pork meat, sometimes with scrambled egg. It is also dried for later consumption. Likewise, the young leaves are used as seasoning: leaves chopped and added to

cooked meat and vegetable dishes during the last few minutes of cooking; impart a mild curry-like taste, bitter but not unpleasantly so. Although slightly toxic, small quantities can be dipped in honey, chewed slightly, and swallowed by some individuals and as salad. The leaves and fruits are also used occasionally to make teas and beer or to season soups in the Western world. The ripe berries preserved to flavour whiskey or vodka. The pulpy arils can be eaten as sweet while the seed mass of the ripe fruit is consumed as condiment.

The bitter melon was traditionally used for a dazzling array of conditions by people in tropical regions. Numerous infections, cancer, leukemia, and diabetes are among the most common conditions it was believed to improve. Further, the plant has a long history of use by the indigenous peoples of the Amazon. A leaf tea is employed for diabetes; as a carminative for colic; topically for sores, wounds, and infections; internally and externally for worms and parasites; as an agent that promotes menstrual discharge; and as an antiviral for measles, hepatitis, and feverish conditions. Leaf decoction as preventative or treatment for many problems, fever, arthritis, hypertension, even cancer; as skin wash, or added to the bathwater; and during cold and flu epidemics as a prophylactic. Leaf poultice and crushed leaves to second-degree gasoline burns. Fresh berries, reconstituted dried berries, or berries preserved in tincture is applied to

Distribution and habitat: Originated in Tropical Africa, Asia, Australia, but possibly first domesticated in eastern India and southern China. It has now a pantropical distribution, with wild and cultivated populations. Also found in America, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, French Polynesia Galapagos Islands, Guam, Hawaii, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Majuro, Republic New Caledonia, Niue , Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, and Vanuatu. M. charantia is found in lowland rainforest, riverine forest, thickets, hedges, waste places, and roadsides and may be locally abundant. Weedy in disturbed areas, escaped from cultivation and naturalized.

Photo by M. David

insect bites, relieve itching and lessens or sometimes prevents formation of welts or sores. The leaf juice applied to the skin, has similar action as the fresh berries; aside from insect bites, it remedies bee stings, burns, contact rashes, and small wounds.

Further the berries, also contains HIV inhibitor; appetite stimulant and as a treatment for gastrointestinal infection and against cancer (breast).

Nowadays, bitter melon comes in capsules and tinctures, which are becoming more widely available in the US and are used by natural health practitioners for diabetes, viruses, colds and flu, and psoriasis. Concentrated fruit or seed extracts can be found in capsules and tablets, as well as whole herb/vine powders and extracts in capsules and tinctures. Meanwhile, it is interesting to that it is planted occasionally for ornamental purposes.

However, a pregnant woman should not use Momordica, as it has an ingredient with some abortion-inducing properties.

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Rubiaceae

Morinda citrifolia L.

Common names: BRN: mengkudu; IDN: mengkudu, bengkudu, cangkudu; KHM: nhoer srok, nhoer thom; LAO: nhoo banz; MYS: mengkudu besar, mengkudu jantan; MMR: nibase, nyagyi; PHL: tumbong-aso, bangkoro, noni (Tagalog); THA: mata suea (northern), yo, yo ban (central), yae -yai (Karen-Mae Hong Son); VNM: nhau; ENG: Indian mulberry, cheese fruit Description: Noni, an internationally adopted common name from Tahiti for this plant, is a small tree with usually crooked trunk and a conical crown attaining a height of 3 m to 10 m, tall.

The bark is greyish or yellowish-brown and is shallowly fissured but not rough. The branches are usually horizontally set in young trees, the young twigs are somewhat robust, green and quadrangular in cross-section. The leaves are simple, opposite,

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the blade ovate-lanceolate, big, up to 50 cm by 17 cm; the Uses: “Foul smell, just like a rotten something…” that’s how the margin entire, usually wavy, the base acute, acuminate at the noni juice is described. One has to pinch one’s nose for a second top, dark green above and lighter green underneath the stipules when swallowing a spoonful of the commercialised juice. But interpetiolary on both sides of the opposite petioles, short, why go under such unpleasant experience? Well, refer it to 101 triangular, green, and persistent. Inflorescences are a head medicinal properties of this miraculous juice tested by ancient which replaced the leaf opposite people of Polynesia. About 2000 years the other leaf with 1 cm to 4 cm ago, the ancient peoples of French long stalk. The flowers are bisexual, Polynesia colonised islands throughout fragrant, the corolla funnel-shaped, the South Pacific. As they made their the petals generally 5 or 6, white in voyages, they brought with them colour, the stamens inserted at the sacred plants from their home base of the petals. The fruit is a islands. These plants had within syncarp, i.e. an aggregate fruit them basic foods, construction fused together to form one fleshy materials, and medicines used by the mass, round, ovate, grennadecolonisers. The most important of shaped with many blunt protuberthese was the Morinda citrifolia ances on the outside, green and plant. Traditional healers would pick ripens straw or light-yellow colour. the fruit before it is fully ripe and Seeds are numerous, lanceolate, place it in direct sunlight. When flattish towards the top, blackish to fully ripe, the fruit is mashed into a dark brown. Over-ripe fruit when puree and the juice extracted crush has a foul odour. A variety of through a cloth. The juice is now this species is Morinda citrifolia L. ready for use. As a general tonic, var. bracteata (Roxb.) Hook. f. the juice is taken during times of Habit (above); fruits (opposite page) which, grows in inland areas. rest.

Photo by J. MacKinnon

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he source of the famous noni juice, this species has already been known as food and medicine for about 2000 years by the ancient peoples of French Polynesia. Morinda from Latin morus, mulberry and indicus, Indian, referring to the similarity of the fruit to the mulberry, Morus indica and citrifolia, having leaves similar to the genus Citrus. Scientifically, Noni is a natural combination of amazingly beneficial compounds to heal the body and to maintain health.

Photo by M. David

The fruit is used for encouraging proper cell function and growth of human body. Noni also is noted to fight against ailments such as: abdominal pains/swelling; abscesses; antibiotic and antimicrobial; anticancer activity; arthritis; balanced nutrition; backache; burns; chest infections; deficient; macrophages/lymphocytes; diabetes type II; diarrhoea; dark spots on skin; depression; dry or cracked skin; heart disease; infection of mouth and gums; inhibits early; chronic fatigue syndrome; eye complaints; high blood pressure; inflamed, sore gums; intestinal worms; regulates thymus; sick people syndrome; stroke; sore throat with cough; make to shampoo, to treat head lice; tonic after childbirth; tuberculosis; virus problems; toothaches; urinary tract ailments; wounds, fractures and boils. It is also a tonic used to slow aging. The fruits, although do not have a nice taste or smell, is eaten as a famine food, (raw or cooked), as a curry, and as livestock feed.

In addition to the fruit, every other part of the Noni plant is valued and used. The bark has reddish purple and brown dye for making batik. A yellowish dye is also extracted from the roots used to dye cloth. Infusions made from the bark are considered excellent treatment for cuts, while the juice extracted from the roots is commonly used for skin eruptions.

The young leaves are eaten as vegetable. Heated leaves applied to the chest relieve coughs, nausea, colic; leaf juice for arthritis. Seeds may be roasted and eaten. Various parts are also used to contain fever and as a tonic; leaves, flowers, fruit, bark to treat eye problems, skin wounds and abscesses, gum and throat problems, respiratory ailments, constipation, fever, stomach pains, and after delivery. The tree is also purposely

planted to provide support for pepper vines and shade tree for coffee bushes; ecologically, as a wind-break; helps to stabilise the shore and provide shade for less hardy plants to establish themselves.

Distribution and habitat: A native of Australia but spread to India and some Pacific Islands including Marquesas, Hawaii,

Eastern Island and Polynesia. It is present throughout Southeast Asia both wild and cultivated. It is naturalised in the Caribbean Region. It often occurs in wild coastal zones, and commonly found up to altitudes of 1500 m in humid and seasonal climates of the seasons. In the wild, the plants thrive on infertile, degenerated soils, sometimes badly drained or with a very low water-retention capacity and a deep water table.

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Moraceae

Morus alba L. Mulberry is not just a food for the worms.

Description: Mulberry is a small to medium-sized tree, about 15 m to 20 m tall. In cultivation, it is mostly a small– sized tree with a short bole and normally with a umbrella shaped crown. In open spaces the boles are generally short with quite a number of big leader branches. The bark surface is dark greyish-brown, rough, cracked or irregularly fissured or sometimes scaly. The twigs are slender, often zigzag, buds reddish brown with many scales, the leaf scars oval. The leaves are simple, alternate, ovate to broadly ovate, rounded to shallowly heart-shaped at the base, acute to acuminate at the top, hairy or smooth on the main veins underneath, the margins are with rounded teeth and with 1 cm to 3.5 cm long slender stalks. The inflorescences are in axillary spikes, the male ones longer, up to 2 cm long; the female ones shorter, 0.5 to 1.3 cm long. The fruits are aggregate and fleshy, i.e., a syncarp, 1.5 cm to 2.5 cm long, white, pinkish or purplish to nearly black, edible even before they ripen and sweet. Flowering period is March to May

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Photos by M. David

Common names: BRN: penawar teratau (Brunei Malay); IDN: murbei, besaran; KHM: mon; MMR: labri; PHL: amoras (Tagalog); SGP: mulberry; THA: mon; VNM: dau, dau tam, tam tang; ENG: white mulberry

Leaves (above); habit of young M. alba (opposite page)

while fruiting is during summer. Seeds are brown, small. It is propagated by seeds, cuttings, root cuttings, grafting and airlayering.

Uses: M. alba is grown widely because of their leaves which serves as food for silkworms. But in China it is more popular due to its medical applications. In Vietnam, the root bark is used as a diuretic (promote urine excretion), anititussive (relieves coughing) and expectorant (clears phlegm from the chest by inducing coughing) and prescribed in high blood pressure, cough, bronchitis and asthma. According to Hartwell (1967–1971), the

fruit juice is used in folk remedies for tumors of the fauces (the passage between the back of the mouth and the pharynx). He reported that it can be: antidotal (counters poisoning), antiphlogistic (reduces inflammation), antivinous (treats addiction to alcohol), astringent, bactericide, diaphoretic (induces perspiration), ditiretic, dewormer, emollient, escharotic (producing scar), fungicide (kills fungi), laxative, nervine (stimulates and calms the nerves), , refrigerant, restorative, sedative and tonic. White mulberry is a folk remedy for aphtha (an affection of the mouth), armache, bugbite, cachexia, cold, constipation, debility/ weakness, diarrhoea, dropsy(excessive fluid accumulation in tissue), dyspepsia(indigestion), epilepsy, fever, headache, hyperglycemia(abnormal high level of blood sugar) , inflammation, insomnia/sleeplessness, melancholy/gloominess or spirit depression, menorrhagia (profuse menstruation), snakebite, sorethroat, stomatitis (mouth inflammation), tumors, vertigo/ dizziness, and wounds (Duke and Wain 1981). The roots and bark are used as astringent and the decoction of leaves being used as a gargle for inflammation of throat (Reed 1976). A herbal tea preparation relieves cough, anxiety and nervousness.

White mulberry is also grown because the fruit can be eaten, raw or cooked. It is also an ingredient of a seductive drink known as Mulberry Wine. Ripe fruits are eaten raw or made into pies, jellies, and jams. Dried fruits can be added to bread, cookies, or puddings like raisins. The leaves are sometimes eaten

as vegetable. Wild birds, poultry, and hogs are fond of fruits while the leaves serve as cattle fodder. Being nutritious and palatable, they are said to improve milk yield of dairy animals.

The wood is valued for sporting goods due to its elasticity and flexibility when steamed, being considered as good as ash.

Sapwood with its property is ideal in making hockey sticks, tennis and badminton rackets and racket presses, cricket bats, also for house building materials, agricultural implements, and furniture. It is also used as a medium grade fuel wood. The stem bark is fibrous and used in China and Europe for paper making while the twigs are good binding materials and for making baskets. Trees often used as ornamentals, roadsides or boundary markers (Reed 1976; C.S.I.R. 1948–1976). It is used primarily as a shade tree, but can be grown in rows to produce a screen or barrier.

But, the white mulberry also possesses a poisonous property. The unripe fruit and milky sap from all parts can cause hallucinations and stomach upset.

Distribution and habitat: A native of China, now widely cultivated in temperate and tropical regions; in Malesia occasionally naturalised, i.e., in the Philippines where it is introduced in 1780. Sometimes it is cultivated elsewhere in Europe, North America, and Africa. The native and subspontaneous habitats of M. alba are generally moist places in mountains and thickets along rivers. In subtropical or dry tropical regions, it can be cultivated up to 3500 m in altitude, but in humid tropics it does not produce good fruit when planted at sea level. It prefers partial shade or partial sun to full sun.

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Apocynaceae

Rauvolfia serpentina (L.) Benth. ex Kurz

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nown as the “insanity herb” and chandra (meaning moon; moon disease or lunacy), has long been used in India for treating mental illness and snake bites. Interestingly, this was the first major tranquilizer, particularly for the treatment of paranoia and schizophrenia, as well as a substance that lowers blood pressure and controls hypertension.

Further, called “chotachand” in Hindi, the snakeroot plant is the source of a local Indian myth. This ancient Hindu legend claims that when a mongoose was about to engage in combat with a cobra, the mongoose would feed on the roots of the snakeroot plant so that when bitten during the battle, the mongoose would be unaffected by the cobra’s venom. From then on the snakeroot plant became known to the locals as a potent antidote for snakebites.

Common names: IDN: pule pandak; MMR: bonma-yaza; THA: ko-me (Karen-Mae Hong Son), kayom (peninsular); khem daeng (northern), khlan, tum-khlan, ma-ong-thi, sa-mo-u (KarenKanchanaburi), rayom (central); VNM: ba gae an co, ba gae thua; ENG: rauvolfia root, serpentine, snakeroot plant

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Description: This is a small, upright, perennial shrub with up to only a meter high, usually unbranched slender stem and unbranched prominent tuberous crooked (where the name serpentina comes from) roots. The leaves are opposite or in whorl of 3 to 5, oblanceolate or obovate, the stalks up to 1.5 cm long. The inflorescences are generally terminal, sometimes axillary, cymose, dense-flowered forming a hemispheric head on the end of the stalk, white or red in colour. The fruits consist of 1 to 2 rounded with a sharp top drupelets, joined at the base, dark red or blackish when ripe. The seeds are single in each fruit, oval, with a rough and dull surface. It can be propagated by seeds, stem and root cuttings, but propagation by seed is preferred.

Uses: R. serpentina is an important medicinal herb. Massive collection from its natural habitat was the cause of depletion of this plant, a major threat to the species. In fact, it is listed on Appendix II of CITES, which means it could become threatened if the trade will not be regulated. Although this plant was well known in India, westerners paid no attention to it until an Indian physician wrote an article on Rauvolfia in 1943. Because of the drug’s noted sedative effects, it was used to treat over a million Indians in the 1940s for high blood pressure. After a U.S. physician named Wilkins

demonstrated the positive effects of reserpine (1952), the plant made frontpage news. This drug rapidly replaced electric shock and lobotomy as treatments for certain types of mental illness. Further, knowledge about the chemistry of this natural plant stimulated the synthesis of other similar alkaloids that are now used as major tranquilisers. Other local cultures used the plant as a relaxant and as a tranquiliser to put children to sleep for the night.

Likewise, the alkaloid is effective for snake bites and scorpion stings. The snakeroot plant has been a part of Ayurvedic medicine for thousands of years in India. Ayurveda is a holistic system of healing devouted to establishing and maintaining a balance between the life energies within us rather than focusing on individual symptoms.

Root rind extract relieves various central nervous system disorders associated with psychosis, schizophrenia, insanity, insomnia, and epilepsy. It can also treat dysentery, diarrhoea and liver diseases. The leaf juice is employed locally against opacity of cornea and to treat wounds and itch and other skin diseases (scabies, eczema, fungal infections); anthelminthic (against worm infection) and tonic. Decoctions of the leaves can also be applied externally to injuries, ulcers and scabies.

The latex is also used as a Trachome.

This plant is also noted to treat the following: abdominal

Distribution and habitat: Found naturally in India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malay Peninsula, southern China (Yunnan) Sumatra, Java and the Lesser Sunda Islands. It is cultivated in Pakistan, Nepal, India,Java, Ambon, Vietnam, southern China, Georgia, and tropical America. Also found in Africa and Madagascar, Australia and the Pacific.

R. serpentina favors sunny or shaded places in well-drained rainforest and secondary thickets, in open places or deciduous forests, up to 2100 m in altitude. Sometimes it grows as a weed in a sugarcane fields. The plant is also frequently seen in hilly or upland areas, but rarely found in plains. It grows luxuriantly well where the rainfall is 2500 mm or more and prefers soil with plenty of humus and rich in nitrogenous and organic matter with good drainage. Alkaline soils are not suitable for commercial cultivation but the species grows in a natural state soil pH level 4. Clayey to clay loam soil is most suitable for good growth. In the northern part of Central Java and most areas of Central Java, populations are usually found under stands of Tectona grandis.

Photo by M. David

discomfort, bile vomiting, blood dysentery, chickenpox, cough, dog-bite, fever, gastric problems, headache, menstrual disorder, prolapse of rectum, rheumatism / rheumatoid arthritis and; spermatorrhoea.

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MEDICINE

115

Cucurbitaceae

Trichosanthes kirilowii Maxim.

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richosanthin, the 2,000-yr old remedy, prom ises additional modern uses. T. kirilowii is a source of protein that could inhibit the reproduction of the HIV virus in human lymphocytes grown in cell cultures. Two thousand years ago, a Chinese healer had extracted the active ingredient of the plant, mixed with other herbs to treat diabetes or as potion against the pregnancy. Nowadays, modern science extracted it to get the potential solution to a killer disease called Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome or AIDS. Common names: THA: lo-hang- kuai (Chinese); VNM: qua lau, dua troi, day bac bat thao ca; ENG: Chinese cucumber, Chinese snakegourd, Mongolian snakegourd Description: This is a dioecious, perennial vine which reach to 10 m long with sparsely soft hairy and angular stem. The leaves are alternate, broadly egg-shaped to rounded in outline, the margin 3- to 7-lobed, the middle lobe the longest, 10 cm to 12 cm by 10 cm to12 cm, the base heart

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

shaped, the lobes possessing short and straight point, shortly fine hairy above, becoming smooth beneath. The male and the female flowers are in separate flowers on the same individual; male flowers are in long racemes, the bracts obovate-rhombic, about 1.5 cm to 2.5 cm long, coarsely tooth; female flowers solitary. Fruits ovoid-globose to ellipsoidal, up to 10 cm long, yellow to orange-red when ripe. Seeds are oblong to ovate-orbicular, compressed, brown to blackish. It is propagated by seeds and vegetative parts. Further, male plants are favoured for root production.

Uses: Chinese cucumber is used for a wide array of medicinal purposes and interestingly, it is eyed as a prospect treatment for AIDS. In fact, under the street name “compound Q,” it was being used secretly to treat AIDS patients in San Francisco. This leads to further medical researches on the properties of the trichosanthin, the active component of the plants responsible for such treatment. Further, this plant is commonly used in Chinese herbalism, where it is considered to be one of the 50 fundamental herbs. In traditional formulas, the Trichosanthes fruit, and other parts of the plant

are important in treating thirst and heat syndromes which are related to diabetes. This has led to investigations of its potential treatment of the disease. Wasting and thirst are also symptoms of tuberculosis, which is also one of the uses of Trichosanthes-containing formulas until nowadays. Hence, it is also primarily used in treating chest pain and phlegm accumulation disorders, specifically when there is sticky phlegm. Meanwhile the extract of the bitter roots can raise blood sugar to treat hypoglycemia (abnormal low blood sugar), induces labour, relieves inflammation, decreases the thickness while increasing the production of mucosal fluid to treat dry cough and for abscess and fever. It is also abortificent of ectopic pregnancy. The rind of the fruit is also used to treat jaundice and sore throat. The root and/or the seed is powdered and used in the treatment of mammary cancer. Other than these uses, Chinese cucumber serves also as antibiotic, anticholesterolemic (prevents build up of cholesterol), antifungal (against fungi attack), antitussive (suppressed coughing), against cancer, depurative (eliminates toxins and purifies the system, especially the blood) emollient(softens the skin, causing warmth and moisture) expectorant (clears phlegm from the chest by inducing

Photo by A. Rugayah

coughing), galactogogue (promotes the flow of milk in a nursing mother), laxative(stimulates bowel movement), oxytoxic (hastens parturition and stimulates uterine contractions), sialagogue (stimulates the secretion of saliva), skin, uterine tonic, vulnerary (promotes the healing of wounds), and diuretic (acts on the kidneys, promoting the flow of urine).

Fascinatingly, the plant has also found its way to in human diet. The young fruit can be pickled while the older fruits can be eaten raw. The leaves and young shoots are cooked and eaten as vegetable. An edible starch can be obtained from the roots although it requires leaching through series of water soaking until the roots disintegrate. It is then mashed into fine pulp and steamed into cakes or used in making dumplings. An edible oil is also extracted from the seed. The fruit is traditionally prepared as a winter soup to ward off colds and influenza.

Meanwhile, the oil from the seed is used for lighting.

Habit of T. tricuspidata

Distribution and habitat: The plant is found in China, Vietnam, Korea, and Japan. T. kirilowii is found in open forest, scrub vegetation, and grassy places, up to 2000 m in altitude. It favours full sun to partly shady condition. In China, it thrives in forest edges and a weed of thickets. It requires a rich well-drained soil and plenty of moisture in the growing.

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Lamiaceae

Vitex negundo L.

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itex contains unique nutrients that have special effects on women’s health. It is believed to suppress libido. It is recorded that Roman wives spread the aromatic leaves on their husbands’ couches for this purpose. It also inspires chastity, which explains one of its common names, chaste tree, making the plant became a symbol of chastity.

Common names: BRN: legundi; KHM: trasiet; IDN: ai tuban, lagundi laut laki-laki; MYS: lagundi, lemuning, lenggundi; MMR: kyaungban-gyi; PHL: lagundi, dangla (Tagalog); SGP: horse shoe vitex; THA: ko-no-ka-mo (Malay- Pattani), kuning (Malay-Narathiwat); VNM: ngu trao, noong kim chan chim; ENG: five-leaved chaste tree, horseshoe vitex, negundo chastetree, chasteberry Description: This a rounded to spreading large shrub or small tree reaching up to 8 m tall, reputed to be fast-growing and partly shedding off its leaves during water stress. The outside bark surface is slightly rough and peeling off in papery thin flakes and pale-brown colour, Leaves are opposite, the leaflets are digitately compound of up to 3 to 5, narrowly elliptic to ovatelanceolate, minutely hairy or glabrous above, densely finely pubescent beneath, median leaflet about 5 cm to15 cm by 1 cm

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to 4 cm, depressed veins above, raised underneath, the margin shallowly blunt-toothed; the leaf stalks long, about 4 cm to 7 cm; petioles absent on leaflet towards the petiole or up to 2.5 cm on the median one. The flowers are cymose and arranged in panicles which are terminal and axillary in the axils of upper leaves; the calyx about 102 mm long, shortly 5-toothed; the corolla blue-violet, hairy inside. Fruits are 4–valved , capsule-like, rounded to broadly egg-shaped, 3 mm to 6 mm long, purple or black when mature. It can be propagated through seeds and cuttings.

Uses: During the Middle Ages, monks chewed the Vitex berries to reduce their sexual desire. Hence, it becomes a food spice at monasteries, where it was called “Monk’s pepper” or “Cloister pepper.” The dried fruit, which has a pepper-like aroma and flavour, is used in herbal medicine preparations.

The plant has long been the herb of choice for easing women’s menstrual discomforts. Other than this, Vitex stem acts on the pituitary gland to produce a hormone called luteinizing hormone (LH). It also keeps prolactin secretions that may benefit some infertile women as well as some women with breast tenderness associated with premenstrual syndrome (PMS). Vitex may also help reduce some of the undesirable symptoms of menopause such as hot flashes due to reduction in progesterone production. Vitex can stabilise the cycle after withdrawal from progesterone birth control pills. Likewise, many studies note that

Vitex can help control acne. For women who are trying to get pregnant, it may be helpful in regulating ovulatory cycle (infertility).

Meanwhile in India, the traditional healers and natives have rich traditional medicinal knowledge about Vitex. The healers prepare special herbal oil from fresh leaves of Vitex and use in treatment of more than 70 common and complicated diseases. Like other herbs, before collecting the leaves, the healers perform special worship ceremony and next day visit to same spot for the collection of leaves. The leaves are washed thoroughly with water and used to prepare this oil. When all watery contents evaporate from the mixture of base oil and Vitex leaves, the oil is collected and stored for future use. The healers use this oil in different ways. The oil is topically used to relieve intense pains due to rheumatism, gout and sciatica. It can also treat skin troubles and migraine. With the right proportion, it can be used as a mouth wash and to treat toothache.

Its root-bark in tincture form is use for irritable bladder and also for rheumatism; powdered root for hemorrhoids and as a demulcent for dysentery; root against dyspepsia, colic, rheumatism, worms, boils, skin disorders. Roots and leaves are used to treat anodyne, bitter tonic, expectorant and diuretic.

Leaves serve as a poultice or in decoction as febrifuge, for wounds and ulcers, for aromatic baths and internally as

Photos by M. David

Habit (above); flowers and leaves (inset)

galactagogue, emenagogue, antigastalgic, and against flatulence; leaves anti-parasitical, alterative, aromatic, pain reliever, for inflammatory joint swellings in acute rheumatism and of the testes from suppressed gonorrhoea or gonorrhoeal epididymitis and orchitits; sprained limbs, contusions, bites; pillows stuffed with leaves are slept on to remove catarrh and headache.

Crushed leaves or poultice to temples for headaches, as plaster on the spleen, removes swelling; as a juice discharges worms from ulcers; leaf decoction with pippali for catarrhal fever with heaviness of head and dull hearing, as warm bath removes pains after child birth. Sap of crushed heated leaves with water to treat coughs and sore throat. Flowers noted for treating

diarrhoea, cholera, and liver disorders, cardiac tonic apparently for their astringent properties; flowers and stalk powder for blood discharge from stomach and bowels; syrup, tablets and capsules from leaves and flowering tops for coughs, colds, fever and asthma. Dried fruit is used to destroy human worm while seeds boiled in water and eaten, or the water is taken internally, to prevent spread of toxins from poisonous bites of animals, also cooling for skin disorders. A juice oil is used for sinuses and neck gland sores (scrofula), or for washing the head for glandular tubercular neck swellings, syphilis, venereal diseases, and other syphilitic skin disorders; juice for rheumatism.

Interestingly, it has also insecticidal and repellant properties. Since generations, the natives of Chattisgarh are using Vitex herb to prepare the earthen pots to store the grains which accordingly, stays for a long time. Likewise, twigs are also used for wattle-work and rough baskets. It also carries allelophatic properties, which can suppress the growth of obnoxious weed Lantana camara. Ecologically, planted as a hedge or for ornamental purposes.

Distribution and habitat: Found in eastern Africa and Madagascar to Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Indian, Sri Lanka, Burma (Myanmar), Indo-China, Thailand, throughout Malesian region, east to the Palau Islands, the Caroline Island and the Mariana Islands. Also widely cultivated in Europe, North America and the West Indies. Also found in other Asian countries such as China, Japan, and Taiwan. It is often found in humid places or along watercourses, in waste places, thickets, and mixed open forest, up to 1700 m in altitude.

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Poisons Poisons

Moraceae

Antiaris toxicaria Lesch.

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He brought the deadly gum; with it he brought some leaves, a withered bough, while rivulets of icy sweat ran slowly down his livid brow.

poem relates how poisonous Antiaris toxicaria is, but stands to be useful among early Southeast Asians, especially in hunting and warfare.

He came, he fell upon a mat, and reaping a poor slave’s reward, died near the painted hut where sat his now unconquerable lord.

The Upas Tree A. Pushkin

The king, he soaked his arrows true in poison, and beyond the plains dispatched those messengers and slew his neighbors in their own domains.

Deep in the desert’s misery, far in the fury of the sand, there stands the awesome Upas Tree lone watchman of a lifeless land.

The wilderness, a world of thirst, in wrath engendered it and filled its every root, every accursed grey leafstalk with a sap that killed.

Common names: BRN: ipoh; IDN: upas (general), ancar (Javanese), tatai (Sumatra); LAO: nong-nong, nong; MYS: ipoh (Peninsular), tasem (Sarawak); MMR: aseik, hymaseik, hkangawng; PHL: dalit (Tagalog), ipo (Bisaya); THA: kong (ShanChiang-Mai), choi nang, yon, ya khang, yang khang, ya nong, mak lin ang (Chiang Mai), chio (Karen-Tak), cha wae, yang nong khao (Na Khon Ratchasima), to-le (Karen-Mae Hong Son), sai khao (Kamphaeng-Phet), thian khamoi (Phetchabun), nong, yang nong (central), nong yang khao (Mae Hong Son), yuan (peninsular), ya nong (central, northern); VNM: sui, thuok ban; ENG: upas tree; sacking tree

Dissolving in the midday sun the poison oozes through its bark, and freezing when the day is done gleams thick and gem-like in the dark.

No bird flies near, no tiger creeps; alone the whirlwind, wild and black, assails the tree of death and sweeps away with death upon its back.

But man sent man with one proud look towards the tree, and he was gone, the humble one, and there he took the poison and returned at dawn.

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Photo by M. David

And though some roving cloud may stain with glancing drops those leaden leaves, the dripping of a poisoned rain is all the burning sand receives.

Habit

Description: Upas is a large, often deciduous tree, attaining 50 m tall and up to 100 cm in diameter at breast height with buttresses of up to 3 m high. The young twigs, leaf stalks, lower

Uses: Early Southeast Asians consider upas tree as sacred.

They largely depend on poisonous plants like upas as source of poisonous latex for hunting and warfare i.e., swabbed on the tips of darts of blowpipes, spears, and arrows. For a fatal effect, they combine latex of two or more poison-containing plants. Hit by it, man or a large game may instantaneously die as the poison enters the bloodstream. Symptoms of its poisoning are vomiting and convulsions due to circulatory and cardiac stimulation.

In small amount, upas latex has medicinal benefits. It may promote healthy blood circulation. Other parts of the upas tree such as its seeds, leaves, and barks are used to treat fever and

Photo by M. David

surfaces of leaves, and veins are beset with rough brown hairs.

Its bark is greyish white, smoothish to slightly shallowly fissured; and sometimes on young bark, it is covered with lenticular small corky protrusions. The inner bark is whitish, then turning red-brown upon exposure, fibrous, the sap creamy white to yellowish-brown, gummy or sticky, turning dirty brown on exposure. The leaves are thin-leathery or slightly membranaceous, appressed hairy to somewhat rough to the touch on both surfaces, elliptical to somewhat egg-shaped, the base heart-shaped to almost triangular, often irregular in shape, the margin tooth to subentire. The inflorescences usually develop on new shoots, together with new leaves, finely hairy. The fruits are usually borne on twigs just behind the older leaves and pear-shaped, covered with fine velvety hairs on the outside, then ripening red or purplish and finally black.

Leaves

epilepsy. The seed has antidysentric effect. Soft fibre is macerated until liquid comes out of it and then placed on swellings to heal.

The wood of upas tree is used for light construction, interior trim, furniture or furniture components, decorative veneer, millwork, cabinetry, packing cases, light joinery work, carving, and structural plywood. The bark’s fibre is used for mat, sack, cordage, pulp, and paper production and making of cloths.

The fleshy fruit is edible.

Distribution and habitat: It is found throughout the Old World tropics, from West Africa to Madagascar, and in Sri Lanka, India, southern China, Indo-China, Thailand, throughout the Malesian region, the Pacific (East to Fiji and Tonga), and northern Australia. Scattered in Thailand, Sabah, and Sarawak, Malaysia, Brunei, Kalimantan. It is found scattered in primary forest up to 1500-m altitude. It can also be found in grassy savanna, on coastal plateaus, areas under semiarid conditions, rainforest, and swamp forest.

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Aristolochiaceae

Aristolochia tagala Cham.

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f all the species of Aristolochia, A. tagala is the mostly widely distributed not only in Southeast Asia, but also in India, China, and Australia, as well.

Common names: IDN: kalayar (Sundanese), puyan (Javanese), kunit (Sulawesi); MYS: akar ketola hutan, akar petola hutan (Peninsular); PHL: timbangan (Tagalog), goan-goan (Bisaya), nagerus (Iloko); THA: kra chao phi mot, krachao mot (central), pu ling (Chiang Mai); VNM: phong ky, day kho rach, ma dau linh, son dich; ENG: dutchman’s pipe; birthworth Description: It is a climber that grows to a length of 20 m, having a cylindrical stem with branches that are slightly grooved.

The leaves are simple, usually ovate to slightly ovate-oblong, smooth above, sparsely short-haired to subglabrous beneath, 6 cm to 27 cm x 4 cm to 16 cm, heart-shaped at the base and acuminate at the top, with 2 pairs of distinct basal veins that appear like crossbars. Inflorescences are racemose or paniculate.

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The most striking feature of this vine is its individual light yellow or dark reddish-brown flower which resembles that of a pipe, narrowed at the base and forming a roundish structure at the midbase then narrowed again and extending to a funnel-shaped lip. The fruits are globose, slightly pyriform or oblong capsule, narrowed to a long base. Seeds are winged.

Uses: The root of dutchman’s pipe is the source of a very bitter tasting compound of aristolochic acid. These acids are known for their “nephrotoxicity” (toxic or destructive to kidney cells) both in humans and some animals. However, these acids have been useful in many ways. The acids contain insecticidal properties against plant pests such as Plutella xylostella (lyponomeutid crucifer), and Ostrinia furnacalis (maize), and Spodoptera litura (cutworm).

For Filipinos, roots in powdered form are useful in restoring the normal tone to human body’s tissue or organs. It also relieves body pains and swelling of infants’ abdomen brought about by the excessive gases in the intestines. At

earlier stage of pregnancy, this plant can be used to induce abortion.

The plant is also the main food plant of many beautiful large birds and butterflies and as such is promoted in butterfly conservation projects and in commercial butterfly-farming.

In Malaysia and Papua New Guinea, leaves are used to treat fever. Malaysians place pounded leaves on the patient’s head. In Papua New Guinea, rubbed leaves are mixed with water and taken as a drink.

Leaves can also treat skin allergies, swollen limbs, and colics by grounding with Curcuma species, particularly rhizomes and placing on affected part.

Distribution and habitat: It is distributed from India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, through Myanmar, Indo-China (Cambodia, Vietnam), China, and Thailand, to the whole of Malesia, the Solomon Islands, and Australia (Queensland). It occurs in forest and thickets, usually up to 800 m altitude and sometimes in 1050 m and 1350 m.

Habit Photo by J. MacKinnon

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Meliaceae

Azadirachta indica A.H.L. Juss.

During the19th century, a story tells of an event when locusts destroyed everything along their path except the Azadirachta trees. People became curious about this plant. And it has proved to withstand infestation because it has no record of fungi attack so far. Now, scientists find a promising future in this Asian tree; medicinally it ‘cures 1,000 diseases’.

many-flowered panicles, bisexual and the male flowers on the same individual regular, 5-merous, fragrant, calyx lobes overlapping at its edge only, petals free, overlapping at the sides; stamens from 8 to 10, filaments united to form a cylindrical

staminal tube with 8 to 10 small appendages at the top, anthers without stalk, free, two-celled, inserted opposite the appendages; ovary superior, style one, stigma head-like, three-lobed.

The fruits are drupaceous, ellipsoid, one-to-two-seeded with a thin membranous seed covering with a small ventral flesh outer seed coat, smells crashed garlic when cut; cotyledons unequal.

Seedlings with a phanerocotylar; germinartion eophylls opposite, trifoliate; leaflets deeply incised, pinnatifid or partite. Flowering and fruiting vary to location starting at age 4yr to 5 yr. Sometimes, it flowers from January through April and fruits started to ripen from June until August. It is propagated by cutting, grafting, tissue culture, and air layering. It was referred in the past as Melia indica and M. azadirachta.

Description: This is a small- to fairly large-sized deciduous or evergreen trees from 20 m to 50 m tall. The bole is straight and cylindrical. It rarely has buttress, up to 90 cm with pinkish-brown or pinkish-grey smooth to becoming rough and sometime fissured bark surface. Inner bark is orange-red. Leaves alternate pinnate, sometimes imparpinnate; leaflets alternate in portion towards the base of the rachis opposite to sub opposite above, lanceolate to elliptic, reduced in size towards each end of the rachis, the margin entire or serrate, glabrous. The flowers are in axillary,

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Photos by M. David

Common names: IDN: imba, mamba (Java), membha, mempheuh (madura), intaran (Bali); LAO: ka dao; MYS: baypay, membu, veppam (peninsular); MMR: tamaka, bowtamaka, tamabin; PHL: neem; THA: khwinin (general), sadao india (Bangkok), salaam (northern); VNM: safu dau; ENG: neem tree, Indian lilac, white cedar

Habit (above); leaves (opposite page); fruits (inset)

Uses: It is highly regarded as an effective pest control for agricultural crops, yet safe to humans and other animals. Every part of the tree i.e., seeds, leaves, flowers, and bark, yield azadarachtin, the substance for making pesticide and fungicides, but the main source comes from the seed kernel.

In India, neem tree has traditionally been used as a skincare to treat acne, dandruff, skin ulcers, psoriasis, shingles, and other skin problems. It has been found effective against virus, fungus, bacteria, parasites, allergies, and inflammations.

Toothpaste, soap, cream, lotion, shampoo, and oil and pharmaceutical products have been produced from neem tree.

Traditional uses of neem still exist using plant parts to treat health problems. To treat skin problems, damp leaves are placed on affected body part overnight until the situation improves. Another way of treating the illness is by using the leaves as tea drink or better yet, take it orally. While it is good source of ingredient for making pesticides, neem extracts may be effective in treating human intestinal parasites using the leaves.

Neem extracts may be used for other purposes like birth control by reducing male fertility. It has potential to treat cancer, diabetes, heart disease, rheumatism, herpes, hepatitis, and malaria. Young leaves and flowers are also used as vegetable.

Neem tree is used in agroforestry and urban forestry.

Leaves and twigs are used as livestock’s fodder and for mulching and fertilizing. It is a source of honeybee forage since its flowers are fragrant. Barks of neem can be a source of tannin and resins.

It provides for good firewood, too. It is planted along avenues as wind break and shade as well.

It is characterised as moderately heavy hard wood, durable, and strong which is best in making plywood. It may substitute Swietenia species in plywood production. Neem wood is ideal for making furniture and other wood works such as tools, carts, panels, frames, poles, and toys.

Distribution and habitat: It originated from Myanmar and India and become naturalised in other parts of Asia, Africa, Australia, Latin America, and the US. It is adaptable under any climatic condition. It thrives at an elevation of up to 1500 m asl.

It grows best in areas with an annual precipitation of about 1000 mm with soil pH of 6.2 to 7.0.

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Leguminosae: Papilionoidae

Derris elliptica (Wallich) Benth.

T

he species is poisonous to man and animals, but it produces an important chemical substance called ‘rotenoids’ to get rid of harmful insects.

Description: This is a woody climbing vine that grows to about 16 m long, enough to form a dense crown especially when trellished. The leaves are compound, alternate, imparipinnate, leaflets opposite, mostly densely hairy on both surfaces when young, the terminal leaflet the biggest while the base pair the smallest, entire.

The inflorescences are axillary or in bunch of flowers on old branches, flowers with brownish short-haired calyx and pinkish corolla, the

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Uses: D. elliptica contains a plant-based toxic crystalline substance containing insecticidal properties. Poison is found in its root, the part of the plant most poisonous. Leaves are said to be poisonous, too, which may kill cattle. Poisonous chemicals found

in this species include elliptone, toxicarol, tubaic acid, and the most toxic is the rotenone. Rotenone has insecticidal properties, which can be an effective substitute to expensive commercial insecticides by attacking the respiratory system of large array of pest crops like moths, aphids, borers, thrips, maggots, apple snail, cutworm, fleas, ticks, lice, mites, and flies.. Rotenone is applied either as a powder, spray, dip or bait.

It is commonly used as a fish poison throughout Southeast Asia, particularly in the Philippines and in some parts of the Pacific, to get rid of unwanted fish species in a fishpond. The pounded root exudes more rotenone affecting wider range under the water. In hunting, poison extract is placed at arrows.

Traditional medicine makes use of the plant for treating antisepsis, leprosy, itchiness, and abscesses.

Photos by A. Baja-Lapis

Common names: BRN: tuba (Brunei Malay, Dusun); KHM: ca bia, k’biehs; IDN: tuba, oyod tungkul (Javanese), tuwa leteng (Sundanese); MYS: tuba, tuba akar; MMR: hon; PHL: tugling-pula, upei tubli; SGP: tuba; THA: kalam pho (Phetchaburi), khruea lia nam, hang lia daeng, lai, lai nam (northern), pho-ta-ko-sa (Karen-Mae Hong Son), uat nam (Surat Thani); VNM: day, mat, day thuoc ca; ENG: tuba root; jewel vine; poison vine

posterior petal base hardened, brownish silky hairy. The fruits are oblong or oblong-elliptic with narrow wing on both sides. The seeds are kidney-shaped, smooth or wrinkled.

Leaves of Derris sp (above); fruits and leaves of Derris sp (opposite page)

ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Distribution and habitat: It is distributed in the Nicobar Islands, Myanmar, Indo-china, Thailand, and throughout Melanesia. It is commonly found in forest edges, roadsides, and along rivers, in Java up to 1500-m altitude. It is cultivated in Southeast Asia, India, tropical Africa, and America.

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Loganiaceae

Strychnos nux-vomica L.

Common names: KHM: slaêng, slaêng thom; LAO: sêng bua (Vientiane); MMR: kabaung; PHL: strychnine tree; SGP: strychnine plant; THA: kot ka kling, krachi, ka kling, tum ka daeng, salaeng-chai (central), salaeng thom, salaeng buea (Nakhon Ratchasima), saeng buea (Ubon Ratchathani), hong-buai-chi (Chinese); VNM: cu chi (Khanh Hoa), ma tien; ENG: nux-vomica tree, strychnine plant Description: A small- to large-sized tree reaching more or less 25 m tall and about 100 cm in diameter at breast height and without definite crown form. Shoots develop around the base of the tree that may mature into different sizes and heights to form a clump. The trunk is slightly fluted at the base, about 5 m to 10 m to the first branch with straw-brown to greyish-coloured bark.

The branches are irregularly set when mature, but in young shoots these are opposite each other with the next pair of branches at right angle to the previous pair. The leaves are simple, opposite, broadly egg-shaped to rounded or slightly oblong, distinctly triveined, the nerves are very prominent

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because these are light-coloured, depressed above and raised underneath of a very dark green leaf blade; the young leaves from shoots are purplish.

The inflorescences are terminal, borne on short branchlets after a pair of leaves. The flowers are cymose, small, funnel-shaped, many, greenish-white with slightly foul odour. The fruits are rounded, green when young, orange to apple green when ripe, the wall is thin, with 1 to 6 seeds; the seeds are flattened disks, more or less a centimetre in diameter.

Traditionally, nux-vomica has been used for medical treatments. The seed has analgesic properties and is used as man’s body stimulant related to nervous, respiratory, stomach, aphrodisiac, tonic and cardiac. It also treats rheumatism, arthritis, ulcer, and paralysis. The Chinese uses the dried seeds for normal blood circulation and body pain reliever. Leaves are used to treat skin problems, enhance hair follicles, and alopecia. Modern medicine is prospecting on nux-vomica to have use in treating cancer and malaria.

The wood is used for making Habit (above); fruits (opposite page) handles for agricultural implements, Uses: Nux-vomica is a major source of tool, cartwheels, and cabinets. Bark is strychnine alkaloid, an important toxic substance used mainly in used to promote normal vigour and tension of tissue or organ pest management, chiefly found in dried seeds. A small dose of and treat fever. Monkeys, civet-cats, and birds eat on the fruit at 0.4 mg is enough to kill a man. At smaller dose, would pulp and disperse the seed. critically impair man’s nervous system. Exposure to strychnine causes skin irritation, hyperthamia, and upper respiratory Distribution and habitat: Found in Cambodia, Lao PDR, problems. Within 15 min to 20 min of ingestion, the victim will Malaysia (northern peninsular), Myanmar, the Philippines suffer violent convulsions. As pest control, commercial strychnine (introduced and locally naturalized in Mindoro), Thailand, Vietnam is combined with one or more inert ingredients to control rodents (southern). Also found in Bangladesh, India, and Sri Lanka. It and fungi. occurs in open habitats.

Photos by M. David

C

aution is necessary in dealing with nux-vomica because almost all parts are poisonous and may pose danger to human with just one seed taken. Despite its highly toxic properties, it is medicinally one of the most important trees.

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Resins and Saps Resins and Saps

Thymelaeaceae

Aquilaria malaccensis Lamk

D

espite the lightness of wood, it is called the “sinking wood”. What makes it heavy is due to the permeated highly prized resin or agarwood in the heartwood. To harvest it, the whole tree is felled and split apart. A 20 cm dbh tree can provide one kg of agarwood, priced at USD 450 in 1997. Today, this is rare in the wild and classified an “endangered” species by the IUCN.

Common names: BRN: gaharu, keras (Brunei Malay); IDN: gaharu, ki karas (Sundanese), mengkaras (Sumatra); MYS: gaharu, garu, tengkaras, karas; MMR: agar; THA: ka-yu-ka-ru, ka yu-ha-hu (Malay-Pattani), kritsana, maihom (eastern, peninsular), phuam phrao (Phatthatung); VNM: tram huong; ENG: agar wood, Malayan aloeswood, Malayan eaglewood Description: A medium-sized tree reaching 20 m to 40 m tall and about 60 cm in diameter at breast height with slender, pale brown, and glabrescent branchlets. The trunk is straight, slightly fluted especially near the base, with buttresses of by to 2 m high and about 10 cm thick. The leaves are simple,

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alternate, the leaf-blade oblong to oblong-lanceolate, smooth above, glabrescent beneath, shiny on both surfaces; the bases acute, attenuate or obtuse; the top acuminate; the tapering point up to 2 cm long; the stalk of up to 4 mm to 6 mm long. Inflorescences are terminal, axillary, usually branched into 2 to 3 umbels, each with about 10 flowers. The flower stalks are from 5mm to 15 mm long, the pedicel short, slender, up to 3 mm to 6 mm long; individual flower bellshaped, 5-merous, 5mm to 6 mm long, green or dirty yellow, calyx lobes 5, stamens 10. The fruits are in a capsule, obovoid to obovoid-cylindrical, usually compressed; the pericarp woody. The seeds are ovoid, small, about 6 mm by 10 mm, beaked, densely red hairy bearing from the base a twisted, tail-like, pubescent appendage as long as the seed.

production of perfume, soap, shampoo and cosmetics. The larger the trunk or branch the better as it demands high cost for trading.

Medicinally, it is used in Tibetan, Indian, and Chinese communities to treat inflammation of internal body organs, abdominal pains, and asthma. It is also used as a liniment by mixing the agarwood with coconut oil to treat rheumatism and other body pains. Even pregnant women may also take it as tonic drink. Also, it is used to treat diseases related to genital organs.

Agarwood can also be used as a substitute for paper, particularly its bark. It is used as religious item and a good material for making small containers for its lightness and easy carvings.

Uses: It is principally traded as raw material used in the production of incense, perfume, and medicine. Burnt splinters of agarwood are used as incense in various religious festivities and ceremonies, which is believed to bring good luck. Malays for example fumigate rice farms with agarwood to make peace with spirits.

The heartwood exudes the fragrance used in the

Distribution and habitat: It occurs from north-eastern India through Myanmar to Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Bangka, Borneo and the Philippines (Luzon). It is commonly found in primary and secondary forest, in plains, hillsides and ridges to 750-m altitude. It prefers heavy soils developed from gneiss and other metamorphic rocks, but it also grows well on sandy loams developed from sandstone.

Photos by M. David

Habit of Aquilaria sp (left); leaves (inset)

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135

Annonaceae

Cananga odorata (Lamk) Hook. f. & Thomson

P

eople may not be attracted to it as a tree (it is actually not gorgeous) but when it flowers, they are fascinated by the green and yellow flowers’ very sweet and fruity fragrance. Its fragrance especially endures at night time. But the flowers’ fragrance is not all that it can offer - it is the main source of cananga and ylang-ylang oils used for decades now in perfume production.

More than that, the oil is sometimes used in food and beverages.

first branch and without buttresses. The bark is smooth, pale grey to silvery. The leaves are alternate, arranged in two ranks, simple and without stipules; the stalk is slender, 1 cm to 2 cm long, narrowly grooved above and smooth; the leaf blade is oblongish and the base is often of unequal sides, sometimes rounded or heart-shaped, the margins are more or less wavy, the midrib and lateral veins are whitish hairy on both sides. The cluster of flowers is unbranched indeterminate and stalked. The individual flowers are bisexual, dull green and turning yellowish with age, very fragrant when mature. The flowers are present all year round. Fruits are many, originating on one stalk in separate bean-like fruit (follicle), dark green becoming blackish when ripe. The seeds are embedded in yellowish oily pulp.

Description: Ylang-ylang is a small- to large-sized forest tree but is cultivated in backyards and gardens. The tree reaches up to 40 m high and about 45 cm in diameter at breast height with irregularly-shaped crown and sometimes drooping branches. The trunk is generally cylindrical in shape up to the

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Photos by M. David

Common names: BRN: kenanga; KHM: chhke, sreng; IDN: kananga (general), kenanga (Javanese), sepalen (Moluccas); MYS: kenanga, chenanga, kenanga utan; MMR: kadatngan, kadapgnam, sagasein; PHL: ilang-ilang; SGP: kenanga; THA: kradangnga (Trang, Yala), kradang nga thai, kradang nga bai yai, kradang nga yai (central), sa ban nga, sa ban nag ton (northern); VNM: ngoc lan tay, huong lan, ENG: ylang-ylang, cananga, perfume tree

Habit (above); flowers (opposite page)

Uses: Fresh flowers of Ylang-ylang serve as natural perfume for Asian women hiding them in their hairs. These also serve as deodorizer, keeping them in the cabinets of clothes or in a closed room (usually bedrooms) until its freshness fade.

During town festivities, it is popularly given as leis to guests and offered in religious ceremonies. In limited supply, ylangylang is mixed with other flowers.

The flowers are sources of oils, obtained through steam distillation. Distillation may be done in several times.

The first extract is however the finest, called ‘extra’, used in

making first-class perfumes. Subsequent extracts are used in soap, cosmetics, and other products for hygiene.

Rubbing flowers through the body especially after bath gives a soothing, refreshing and relaxing feeling, leaving behind the body with floral-scent. The oil is very much used in aromatheraphy mainly as a general skin care and treating stress and psychological related problems, done through the inhalation of the ylang-ylang scent and application on the body to restore and enhance health and beauty. It works with the natural healing abilities of human bodies, as an antibiotic and antiseptic chemical. It treats skin problems such acne, eczema, irritations and insect and snake bites. Also, it treats nervousness, reducing tensions and high blood pressure. With all the uplifting of spirit and calming effects to human, it is believed that it can also treat impotence or frigidity. Traditionally, it can also be used as pomade to enhance hair growth.

Dried flowers and leaves have their uses as well. In Indonesia, the flowers are used against malaria and leaves are rubbed on skin to treat itchiness. Also, Indonesian make ropes out of beaten bark. The wood is potential for making light materials, like matchsticks. Ylang-ylang seeds too, may be used to treat fever, externally.

Distribution and habitat: It might have originated and/or just naturally grow in Southeast Asia. It occurs naturally in Australia and Pacific islands. It is also found in China, India, Africa, and America. It grows well in more humid lowland tropics, sometimes with other evergreen and teak trees. It prefers well-lit places and well-drained soils (fertile sandy loam and volcanic).

RESINS AND SAPS

137

Lauraceae

Cinnamomum camphora (L.) Nees & Ebermaier

T

his plant yields camphor, a white, crystalline solid ketone with pungent taste and odour commercially used to produce leading mentholated ointments.

Description: This is a small- to medium-sized tree with wide spreading crown. The root system is shallow yet extensive. The stem is usually short and stout with deeply-furrowed dark greyish to brown-coloured bark.

The mature branches are usually crooked, the branchlets and young twigs are brownish or pinkish and smooth. The fresh leaves when crushed are aromatic, arranged alternately on the young twigs with slender stalks, The leaf blades are broadly egglike to oblong in shape, blunt or rounded at the base, distinctly and sharply pointed to gradually diminishing point at the top, somewhat leathery in texture, dark green, rather whitish underneath, distinctly triveined, the margin also strongly-veined, the veins light-

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Uses: It is planted as a shade tree or windbreak. Birds eat on the black berries of camphor tree. Wood is light to medium and soft to hard in weight and hardness, respectively. It is valued for its attractive red and yellow striping; good working and insect-repelling properties. As such it is commonly used

for fine cabinetry, chests, closets, coffins, instruments, and sculptures.

It is grown commercially for its medicinal oil, which yields from the wood, roots, and leaves. The oil is characterised by a strong penetrating fragrance, a pungent bitter flavour, and feels cool on the skin like menthol but has irritating qualities as well as a numbing effect. It is used to treat ailments such as parasitic infections, diarrhoea, inflammation, itchiness, nervousrelated ailments, chest and muscle pains and toothaches. It is also used as a raw material in the production of celluloid, explosives and plasticizers.

It can also be used as an insect repellent such as mothballs; fumery and soap, paints and lacquers industries. Traditionally, it is used as an abortifacient, anti-aphrodisiac, contraceptive, cold remedy, and suppressor of lactation.

Photo by M. David

Common names: BRN: barus; IDN: kamper, kapur barus, nanang; MMR: payok; PHL: camphor; SGP: camphor tree; THA: phrom- seng (Shan -Northern), karabun, op choei yuan (central); VNM: long nao, ra huong; ENG: camphor tree, Japanese camphor tree, Chinese sassafras

coloured and very distinct. The inflorescence is a panicle with loose flower clusters. The individual flowers are small. The fruits are a berry, violet to blackish when ripe, one-seeded.

Leaves

Distribution and habitat: It occurs naturally in Vietnam, Taiwan, Japan, the Ryukyu Islands, China south of the Yangtze River, and Hainan. It is cultivated in tropical and subtropical countries including Southeast Asia. It naturally thrives in primary forest but also in open areas, up to 3000-m altitude, though below 1000-m is considered optimal.

Habit of Cinnamomum sp (left); dried leaves of Cinammomum sp (above)

RESINS AND SAPS

Photos by M. David

139

Poaceae

Cymbopogon citratus (DC.) Stapf

I

t is usually mistaken as Imperata cylindrica, another grass commonly seen in idle fields. But it is no ordinary grass, given its many splendid uses, but just a word of caution before using it– the leaf blades are sharp.

Common names: BRN: serai; KHM: sleek krey sabou; IDN: serai dapur (general), sereh (Sundanese), bubu (Halmahera); LAO: ‘si khai, ‘sing khai; MYS: sereh, serai, serai dapur; MMR: sabalin; PHL: tanglad, salai (Tagalog), balioko (Bisaya); SGP: serai; THA: kha-hom (Shan- Mae Hong Son), khrai (peninsular), cha khrai (northern), soet-kroei, loe -kroei (Khmer-Surin), ta khrai (central), ho-wo-ta-po (Karen-Mae Hong Son), hua-sing-khai (Khmer-Prachin Buri); VNM: sa, sa chanhm sa duo; ENG: lemongrass, West Indies lemongrass, citronella Description: The lemon grass is a perennial, tufted, aromatic grass with numerous erect hollow stems (culms) arising from short-branched rhizomes. The culms reached to 3 m high and is solid at the base, with a waxy powdery secretion on the surface below the nodes. The leaves are sheathing; the sheath is leathery, rounded in cross section, tightly embracing the culm, smooth with fine longitudinal lines, the ones at the base persisting; the thin projection from the

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top of the leaf sheath is rounded or flattish; the blade linear, up to a meter long and 2 cm wide, drooping, whitish green, midrib prominent below, white above, smooth on both surfaces but the top portion and margins are often rough to the touch. Inflorescences are a large, loose, several times divided, nodding panicle, up to 60 cm long, repeatedly branched, each division issuing from a spathe-like sheath, the final branch issuing from the small spathe with a pair of racemes; spikelets bearing 2 florets. The seeds are cylindrical to subglobose with basal hilum.

Uses: With its splendid many uses, this grass is really extraordinary. Asian households keep this plant within their gardens as a readily available source of lemon-scented spice used in cooking preferred meats with some of its crushed fresh leaves and as food flavourings - the end result is a hotspicy-taste, fresh-grassy and yellow-coloured food sauce.

The Visayans of the Philippines are fond of using it in cooking delicacies as replacement for ginger and onion.

Also, It is well known as a condiment for different kinds of food such as drinks, sherbet, and other food preparation. In Indonesia, the heart of young shoot is taken as side dish with rice. A very ingredient in Thai cuisine, flavouring many dishes, crushed into green curry or finely sliced culms in salads. But aside from it being edible, this grass makes

human bodies healthy, with its carminative and anticholeric properties. Chinese use the grass to treat colds, headache, intestinal problems, eczema, and reduce high blood pressure.

Women, particularly Indian, love to wash their hairs using waters crushed with fresh leaves. It has been practised for centuries now. It also serves as sanitizer and perfume in toilets to that effect given its also source of important citral oil. Oil has antifungal and antibacterial properties. The oil is not only used for body massage but also as anti-ectoparasites for chicken and cattles when applied externally. The oil is widely used in making soaps, perfumes and cosmetics. Leaves, which passed through the distillation process, can be mixed with cattle feeds. It is also good as soil cover especially on sloppy land areas and as source of material for papermaking.

Distribution and habitat: Originated from Malesian regions, and later cultivated in some parts of South and Southeast Asia. It is also cultivated in South and Central America, Madagascar and nearby islands, Africa, Southern parts of the Russia Federation and north of Australia. It grows well under sunny, warm yet humid places. Soil pH preference is 5.5 to 7.5 though sometimes, good growth is achieved at a pH level of 9.6.

Habit; leaf sheaths (inset) Photos by M. David

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Apocynaceae

Dyera costulata (Miq.) Hook. f.

T

his tree produces latex, which when coagu lated is an important raw material for the manufacture of chewing gum.

are in slender axillary panicles, small, said to open during the early evening. The fruits are in opposite, large spreading follicles that are woody and opening at the inner side. The seeds are from 12 to 24 in each follicle, flat, ellipsoid, surrounded by membraneous wings.

Common names: BRN: jelutong bukit; IDN: jelutung bukit (general), melabuai (Sumatra), pantung gunung (Kalimantan); MYS: juletong bukit (general), jelutong pipit, jelutong daun lebar (Peninsular); THA: tin pet daeng (peninsular), ye-lu-tong (Malay-Yala, Pattani), lu-tong (Malay-Narathiwat); ENG: hill jelutong

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Photos by M. David

Description: The jelutong is a large deciduous forest tree attaining over 60 m tall in the wild, although shorter when planted at roadside or as park tree with a diameter at breast height of 250 cm. The crown is made up of successive lateral main branches and small angled branches appearing as if they are horizontally set, this making a huge lofty dense columnar crown with a dome-shaped top. The trunk is big and straight, up to about 30 m up the first branch, shorter on park trees, and without buttress. The outer bark is light brown to whitish, becoming dark when wet, smooth but with irregular tiny small flakes or scales. Leaves are simple, arranged in whorls at top of the ultimate twigs, the leaf blades shiny, wide, oblong, depressed veins above and slightly wavy margins. The flowers

Uses: Since 1922, it has been a source of coagulated latex used mainly in the manufacture of chewing gum as substitute for the chicle latex obtained from Manilkara zapota (L.) P. Royen. Its other uses are for the manufacture of inferior rubber. The timber is used for construction purposes.

Heartwood creamy white to pale straw not differentiated from sapwood. Grain mostly straight; texture moderately fine and even; slightly lustrous without taste but has a slight sour odour that is distinctive. Marked with latex traces or canals often in clusters 60 cm to 90 cm apart along the stem. It is used for patternmaking, drawing boards, carvings, wooden shoes, picture frames, and pencil slats.

Habit (above); trunk (opposite page)

Distribution and habitat: It is distributed in peninsular Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore, Sumatra and Borneo. It is found scattered in usually primary dipterocarp forests. It occurs in primary lowland on hill forest in welldrained soil, up to 300-m altitude.

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143

Moraceae

Ficus elastica Roxb. ex Hornem.

Common names: IDN: rambung (Eastern Sumatra), kajai (Padang), karet (Sundanese); MYS: bunoh seteroh (Kelantan); MMR: bedi; PHL: balete; SGP: beringin; THA: yang lop (central), yang india (Bangkok), lung (northern); VNM: da bupdo, da cao su, da dai; ENG: India rubber tree Description: It is a large evergreen tree reaching up to 55 m tall, park trees are shorter of about 30 m tall with many main branches sending down numerous aerial roots which gain foothold on the ground and later form what is known as banyan. In older trees, the distinct main trunk becomes a mass of connected interlocking roots that continue to spread laterally above the ground. Its bark is rather smooth and when cut produces white sap. In fact, all parts of the tree when disturbed produces a white latex. The leaves are arranged spirally, simple and Leaf arrangement elliptic, leathery, entire, distinctly v-

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shaped. The reddish stipules, enclosing the leaf bud, drop off early. The young leaves that emerge from the new shoots are large, glossy with red stalks. The inflorescences are a fig, called syconium, axillary, in pairs, sometimes solitary, with basal bracts that fall early and leave scars. The flowers are unisexual, male or female only, male flowers and with short stalk, gall flowers present, female flowers without stalk, tepals free, ovary unilocular, style one with simple head-like stigma. Infructescences (fruits) a fig, shortly ellipsoidal, yellow when ripe, individual fruit is a drupelet, with a fleshy covering and hard seed.

Photo by M. David

I

t was one of the “first plants of the tropical regions of Asia to be grown for rubber production” (Polhamus 1962, in IRRDB.NET).

Uses: India rubber tree has been previously one of the minor sources of natural rubber latex; now majority comes from Hevea brasiliensis. The natural rubber latex obtained from this plant is characterised by high technical strength with resistance to fatigue and good workability.

Largely, the natural rubber material produces quality automotive tyres.

Unlike synthetic material, which absorbs water, the natural rubber latex produced is used in making surgical and medical examination

gloves and condoms. Because of this quality, it could prevent the transmission of disease like the HIV. Natural latex rubber is blended with synthetic material to produce high quality automotive-related products such as wiper blades, engine seals, hose for air-conditioning. Other products from it are balloons, catheters, electricians’ gloves, foam for making pillows and mattresses, adhesives, carpets and rugs, swimming caps, paints, underwear, diapers, papers, clothing with elastics, golf ball, and a lot more rubber-based products.

Its fibrous bark is used in making ropes and clothes.

Leaf tips are eaten as vegetable in Java, Indonesia. The wood because of poor quality has limited uses in the manufacture of boards, posts, boats and fuel.

Nowadays, India rubber tree has been used as an indoor ornamental plant, however a wider space is required when used outdoor which serves as shade.

Distribution and habitat: It is naturally found in northeastern India and Myanmar, northern Peninsular Malaysia and Sumatra and Java, Indonesia. It is introduced and cultivated worldwide. It best thrives in areas with 8°C to 33°C temperature and annual precipitation of 1750 mm to 3750 mm without a marked dry season. It cannot be found in waterlogged areas.

It occurs in lowland rainforest in southern West Java and in hill forest, particularly on cliffs and limestone hills.

Habit; infructuscences (inset top); trunks (inset bottom) Photos by M. David

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Cuppresaceae

Fokienia hodginsii (Dunn) A. Henry & H. Thomas

T

his rare and remarkable plant was discovered in 1908 in Fokien, China by a certain Capt.

Hodgins— hence the name. It is the only plant of the genus Fokienia with leaves that are scale-like having large stomata at the back. It is now considered a threatened species due to overexploitation of the aroma trade. More than 20 years ago, the price of the resin was USD 20/kg.

years. It can readily be propagated from cuttings rooted under mist.

Uses: Timber is used for making expensive coffins and furniture due to its resinous, fine-grained, light, durable, and easy to work on its wood qualities. Tribesmen in Lao and Vietnam split the timber for roofing and wall material. It is also used as art articles and quality charcoals.

More than the uses of its wood, Fokienia is valuable source of pemou oil which can be extracted from the plant through distillation, particularly from old root wood or stumps generally used in making of perfume, soap, cosmetics, and medicines.

Description: This is a usually monoecious tree, which usually grows 15 m to20 m tall but sometimes reaching 35 m tall. It has a very distinct scale-like leaves, wherein the leaflets overlap at the edges and inserted on the twigs in groups of 4.Its inflorescence is a cone; male cone is cylindrical, consisting of peltate stamens bearing cone scales, each scale with 3 to 4 pollen sacs; female cone is subglobose, consisting of decussate-opposite, woody, peltate scales, each fertile one bearing 2 basal ovules. Each fertile scale has 2 seeds, ovoid in shape, ridged, bearing 2 very unequal lateral wings. Flowering is in October, fruiting in May-July but maturing takes about 2

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Photo by A. Baja-Lapis

Common names: LAO: lang len, leng le; VNM: po mu; ENG: Siam wood oil, pemou oil.

Scale-like leaves and cones (above); habit (opposite page)

Distribution and habitat: It is endemic to Lao PDR (northern), Vietnam (Dac Lac, Gia Lai, Ha Bac, Ha Giang, Ha Tinh, Hoa Binh, Kon Tum, Lai Chau, Lam Dong, Lao Cai, Nghe An, Son La, Thanh Hoa, Tuyen Quang, Vinh Phu, Yen Bai, Dai Son, Pu Mat, Vu Quang and Bi Doup) and southeastern China (Zhejiang, Fujian, Guizhou, Yunnan). It occurs in everwet, often peaty mountain forest, in China up to 700-m altitude, in Lao and Vietnam between 1000-m to 2000-m altitude.

Photo by G. Bryant

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147

Dipterocarpaceae

Hopea Roxb.

T

he genus is composed of over 102 species with which the oldest fossilized wood belongs.

This was found on the east coast of India and dates back from the Miocene period.

Common names: BRN: merawan, garang buaya (Brunei Malay); KHM: kôki:(r); IDN: dammar mata kucing (Sumatra), gagil (Kalimantan); LAO: kh’è:n; MYS: gagil, selangan, mang (Sarawak, Sabah), luis (Sarawak); MMR: thingan; PHL: manggachapui; SGP: chengal; THA: takhian-thong (central); VNM: sao, sao den, sang dao, kien kien; ENG: light hopea Description: Species of this genus are small- to mediumsized, occasionally large trees; the bole is usually tapering and branching low; buttresses usually thin or sometimes thick, in some species stilt roots and flying buttresses occur.

The crown is lanceolate or generally tapering from a rounded base toward the apex. The bark is brown to greyish brown, generally smooth, but in other species it is cracked or flaked. The stipules which are linear, drop off early but with small saplings these sometimes fall late. The leaves are small- to medium-sized or large, narrowly oblong;

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the nerves are either ladder-like or so-called “dryobalanoid”, the petiole straight. Inflorescences are paniculate, slender, and terminal or axillary. The flower buds are small, eggshaped or rarely rounded. The two sepals are imbricate, outer ones ovate, more or less rounded at the top, 3 inner ones are relativlely rounded, often with sharp points. The petals are connected at the base, oblong and falling together in a circular formation. The stamens are 10 in, 15 in or up to 38 in H. plagata (a Philippine species). The anthers rounded but tapering at the top, the appendage twice as long as the anthers. The ovary is smooth or hairy, egg-shaped (without or with a distinct stylopodium). The style is long or short, smooth, the stigma minute. Fruits comparatively small (when compared to those of Dipterocarpus), 2 outer fruit calyx lobes extended, spatulate; 3 inner lobes short, or 5 short, unequal in length; nut egg-shaped, usually smooth with a distinct stylopodium, i.e., if this is present in the flower. The pericarp is splitting in 3 portions or irregular at germination.

Uses: Aside from the major use of Hopea species for general construction purposes, it is also a source of resin.

Hopea beccariana, H. dasyrrhachis, H. dryobalanoides, H. dyeri, H. ferruginea, H. johorensis, H. mengarawan, H. myrtifolia, H. odorata, H. pedicellata, H. pierrei, H. pubescens, and H. sangal are some species which yield an important resin used in the manufacture of varnish. It can also be used locally for torches and caulking boats.

Traditional medicines made use of resins that were applied to wounds and sores. Bark of some species like H. acuminata and H. odorata contains tannin, which can be used in dyeing leather. Barks are also used as traditional house partitions and roofings.

Distribution and habitat: It is distributed from mainland Southeast Asia towards Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo, the Philippines, and New Guinea. It is found from sea level to 1650-m altitude. It occurs as a main canopy or understorey, rarely as an emergent tree in evergreen or seasonal, semievergreen forest. The semievergreen forest accommodates more Hopea species, often narrow endemics.

The different species occur in a wide variety of forest types, ranging form mixed dipterocarp forest to heath forest and swamp forest.

Photo by C. Reyes

Photo by M. David

Bark of H. nervosa

Habit of H. nervosa (left); fruits of Hopea sp (above)

Photo by C. Reyes

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Myrtaceae

Melaleuca cajuputi Powell

F

rom about 250 species in the genus Melaleuca, it is the only species to occur naturally west of Wallace’s Line.

and showy stamens. The fruits are small, globose with many-seeded capsules. They are set closely in set clusters and remain attached without falling for a number of years, the fruit may open and seeds released. Seeds are tiny, brown in colour.

Description: The papery bark is a shrub to medium-sized evergreen tree reaching up to 15 m to 20 m tall and rather thick rounded to oval-shaped crown and short rather spirally twisted stem. The trunk is short, the bark greyish brown coloured, thick, peeling off in paper thin sheets from below up. This characteristic resulted to its name the paper bark tree. The leaves are simple, alternate, with silky glabrescent hairs, the young shoots are slender, with silky and spreading long fine hairs. The leaf blades are leathery shortly oblong to lanceolate-elliptic, the base rounded to sometimes oblique, the apex acute to sometimes apiculate, with prominent veins and prominently reticulate. It reputedly gives off a smell of a “tea tree”

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Photo by M. David

Common names: BRN: kayu putih, gelam; KHM: smach chanlos; IDN: kayu putih (general), galam (Sundanese), gelam; MYS: kayu putih, gelam; SGP: cajeput; THA: samet (general), kue- lae (Malay-Pattani), met (peninsular); samet khao (eastern); VNM: tram, tram gio; ENG: cajeput, white tea-tree, broad-leaved tea-tree, paper-barked tea-tree, swamp tea-tree, white-wood, punk tree

Habit (above); leaves and inflorescences (opposite page); flaky bark (inset)

when crushed. The inflorescences are terminal or axillary at the axils of the leaves on the upper part of the twigs.

They are in spikes with the appearance of a “bottlebrush”. The individual flowers are small with tiny petals

Uses: Wood yields high quality charcoal in Vietnam. The wood is ideal for construction due to its termite-resisting property. Stem and leaves produce cajuputi oil out of distillation used as household medicine in treating coughs and colds, stomach cramps, colic and asthma; used also as liniments and ointments for rheumatism, neuralgia, toothache and earache and to treat indolent tumours. It treats body parasites such as roundworm and genital-urinary system infection. It can be used in producing insect repellents, soap, perfume, cosmetics, and detergents. Flowers attract bees, thus produce honey and beeswax. Shoots are eaten by livestock like goat.

Distribution and habitat: Exact limits of the natural range are not known. In Southeast Asia it has been cultivated for hundreds of years. It is naturally occurring in Indonesia (Moluccan Islands of Buru, Seram and Ambon). Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. Also from tropical Australia through south-western Papua New Guinea.

Photos by J. Mackinnon

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151

Pinaceae

Pinus merkusii Jungh. & de Vriese

Common names: IDN: tusam (general), dammar batu, dammar bunga (Aceh, Sumatra); MMR: pyek, shja, tinyutinshu; PHL: tapalau (Sambali, Tagalog); SGP: merkus pine; THA: kia plueak dam (northern), kia plueak na (Chiang Mai), chuang (northern, northeastern), chiang-sao (Karen-Mae Hong Son), cho (Karen- Chiang Mai), tai (Ubon Ratchathani, Si Sa Ket), paek (Shan-Mae Hong Son, Loei), sonkhao, son song bai, son hang ma (central) ; sa-ron (Khmer-Surin); VNM: thong nhua, thong hai la; ENG: merkus pine, Mindoro pine, Sumatra pine Description: This is a large pine tree, which attains a height of 70 m and up to 140 cm in diameter at breast height with somewhat pyramidal crown in young specimens. The bole is generally straight, only gradually tapering, about 30 m long to the first branch. The bark is thick, forming longitudinal plates and scaling usually from below up. The branches are rather thick and heavy, ascending to sometimes horizontally set.

Needles are in pairs, slender but rather rigid with persistent basal sheaths. The cones are solitary or in pairs, cylindrical or ovoid-conical; the swollen top of the scales are smooth and tetragonal in shape. Seeds are egg-shaped having a covering of

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varying hardness, and with a papery wing which detach easily.

electronic industry, it is used as an insulating material. It is also a material for chewing gums and health care industry, such as soaps and detergents.

Turpentine, also in liquid form, is produced after steam distillation, with sharp and strong odour and bitter taste. It is used in the manufacture of paint, varnish, fragrances, flavours, vitamins, adhesives, disinfectants with pine odour, among others. Merkus pine is also a source of an important wax ingredient used in batik fabric industry.

Timber of merkus pine is used for general construction, particularly as posts, piles, and for pulp and paper industry.

Pine trees are used as Christmas trees during Christmas seasons among Christian nations.

Uses: The major use of merkus pine is as a source of good quality crude resin, which is obtained by tapping and injuring the sapwood and cambium of living standing tree. Ordinary good quality resin in pine trees has an acid range of 160 to 170, but merkus pine has over 190, which is a rare resin acid.

Raw crude resin is a thick and sticky, in fluid form, which transformed into brittle solid form, called “rosin” after the process of steam distillation. It has various important commercial applications, among which are for the manufacture of adhesives, paper-sizing agents, printer inks, solders and fluxes, surface coatings, and synthetic rubber. In Photo by M. David

I

n the wild, merkus pines are pioneers and colonisers. Their natural range extends after the occurrence of fire.

Distribution and habitat: It is naturally growing in eastern Myanmar, Indo-China, southern China, northern Thailand and western Luzon and Mindoro in the Philippines, Sumatra (Aceh, Tapanuli Region, Kerinci Mountain). It is planted mainly in Southeast Asia. It occurs in areas with a mean annual rainfall of 1000 mm to 3500 mm under a mean temperature of 21°C to 28°C annually. In Mindoro, Philippines it occurs at an altitude below 1000 m and as low as is 60 m asl. While in Sumatra, Indonesia, it occurs up to 2000 m in altitude or higher.

Habit (left); needles (opposite page)

Photo by J. MacKinnon

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153

Santalaceae

Santalum album L.

I

t is the only species of Santalum occurring naturally in Asia.

Scent is found in heartwood; the darker the colour, the greater the scent. This is used as incense for many religious ceremonies. Coffins made from its wood are expensive.

Sachets of its saw dust are stored in lockers and cabinets to deodorize clothings with their stale smell. Powder or ground wood mixed with water gives cooling effect when rubbed on the body. It is taken internally to treat gonorrhoea. It also used to treat spasm and stomachache.

Other parts of sandalwood have their uses too. The seeds yield oil which is mainly used as lamp oil. Fresh leaves yield a pale yellow wax. The fruits are edible.

Description: This is a small evergreen tree, sometimes reaching 20 m tall. Sometimes, it grows shrubby or climbing up to 4 m tall; the trunk cylindrical; the bark coarse, greyishbrown to reddish brown; the lower branches sometimes drooping; branchlets slightly angular. The leaves are arranged in opposite pair, with thin stalk; the blades, egg-shaped, lanceolate-elliptic with gradually narrowed top, surface above pale green, whitish beneath. The inflorescences are in terminal panicles or raceme. Flowers are bisexual, bell-shaped, initially yellowish, turning brownish red, with hairs grouped behind the stamens. Fruits are oval in shape, a 1-seeded drupe, with a small apical collar, outside blue to black-red, soft or firm. Seeds are without seed cover or testa.

Uses: It is a source of sweet-woody scented essential oil, obtained particularly from its trunk, main branches, and roots,

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Photos by M. David

Common names: BRN: cendana; IDN: cendana (general), ai nitu (Sumba), hau meni (Timor); MYS: chendana; MMR: san-ta-ku; PHL: sandalwood; SGP: sandal wood; THA: mai hom India; VNM: bach dan huong, dan huong trang; ENG: sandalwood

Bark (above); habit (opposite page); fan (inset)

which is the part with the highest concentration. The obtained oil is volatile, which is a property of oil found in odorous material. The dark wood is an indication of high oil wood content. Oil is obtained by acid hydrolysis of distilled sandalwood chips and sawdust. The major use of the oil is in production of perfumes, cosmetics, and toiletries, and used in aromatheraphy. It is also commercially used as a flavouring ingredient in beverages.

It bears sedative effect on mice when inhaled.

Distribution and habitat: Its exact origin is not known, but probably it is endemic in the Outer Banda group, a group of islands in southeastern Indonesia, of which Timor and Sumba are the most important ones. Its present distribution extends from Bondowoso District in east Java eastwards to Minor, Sulawesi, and the Moluccas and as far as northern Australia. It is thought to have originated from southern India but it is more often assumed that it was introduced into India about 2000 years ago. It occurs in other tropical countries including Mascarene Islands, Sri Lanka, China (Guandong), and Taiwan. It grows naturally up to 1500 m in altitude, which requires good dose of sunlight. It occurs mostly on shallow stony soils and grows well on fertile loamy soil.

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155

Styracaceae

Styrax tonkinensis (Pierre) Craib ex Hartwich

T

his plant produces a vanilla-scent resin exten sively used as incense and in the production of a wide range of healthcare, medical, and food products.

above glabrous, underneath with whitish star-like hairs.

Inflorescences are in panicles with few leaves at the bases; the flowers regular, bisexual, white and maybe scented. The fruits are egg-shaped, splitting into three parts. Seeds are orange in colour.

Common names: BRN: pokok kemenyan; IDN: luban; LAO: nha:n kh’an th’ung, nha:n ngwà,(kôk) ph’unh, ynan khao; THA: kam yaan; VNM: bo de, nhan, canh kien trang; ENG: siam benzoin, Lao benzoin tree gum, benjamin benzoin

Photo by A. Baja-Lapis

Uses: Styrax species produce benzoin, a balsam obtained by injuring the cambium. Benzoin resin is nonflammable, basically as incense in rituals or ceremonial activities, medical, and food flavouring.

For it to release fragrance, heat is applied with the use Description: Siam benzoin is a shrub or small tree reaching of charcoal tablet placed in a heat-proofed container. Powdered 15 m to 20 m tall with up to 40 cm in diameter at breast bezoin is sprinkled over the ignited height. The tree emits a balsam odour charcoal tablet, which emits vanilla when the bark or other parts of the odour. It can be used solely or in tree is scratched or injured. The outer combination with other resins bark is greyish and smooth or produced by other plants like Boswellia vertically cracked and finely fissured. spp.

The inner bark is soft, brown, deep Extracted fragrance of benzoin red, pink or purplish red with sapwood has been used in the production of that is white or creamy coloured. The many personal health care and leaves are simple, alternate, spirally household products mainly as soaps, arranged and without stipules; leaf shampoos, lotion and creams, blades entire, ovate or oblong or colognes, perfumes, air fresheners, sometimes lanceolate with generally and detergents. In traditional rounded base and the top acute, S. tonkinensis in its natural habitat

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medicine, bezoin brings soothing and relieving effects when inhaled or topically applied. A small amount of benzoin, in tincture form through steam, relieves catarrh, laryngitis, bronchitis, and upper respiratory tract disorders. It is also applied as lotion to treat dry skin and other skin problems like warts and allergies. It can be taken internally in some cases acting as a carminative, expectorant, and diuretic.

Benzoin’s vanilla odour is used as flavouring agent in making sweets and desserts like cakes, ice creams, milks, and syrups. In other countries, it is used in making chewing gums and tobacco flavourings. Other purposes are for pulp production, as in the case of Vietnam, where large plantations are established. For the Laotians, they use the wood for building purposes.

Distribution and habitat: It occurs naturally in southern China and in the northern parts of Lao PDR and Vietnam. It thrives well in mixed primary forest with rich clayey soils. It is less common in dense secondary forest. It is light-demanding and has been observed in open areas at upper storey. In the wild, the mean annual rainfall requirement is usually 1500 mm to 2200 mm. Under cultivation, it thrives in areas with mean annual rainfall of 1300 mm and 3 to 6 dry months. In Lao PDR, siam benzoin is found in northern provinces of Luang Prabang, Oudomxai, Huaphan, and Phongsali, in areas with 300-m to 1000-m altitude.

Scientific Wonder Scientific Wonder

Araceae

Amorphophallus titanium Becc.

A.

titanium, also known as the corpse flower, is reputedly the world’s stinkiest flower.

When in bloom, this charmer emits a rotting flesh odour that can be sniffed 800 m away.

result, it is ranked as the largest/ longest unbranched inflorescence in the world. A single huge leaf will emerge sometime after the inflorescence dies out resembling a tree sapling. The mature leaf is patterned with irregular pale green blotches and at the top divides into umbrella-like leaflets of up to 15 m in circumference. Propagation is difficult because it rarely set seeds. The female flowers open first and by the time the male florets are producing pollen they are no longer receptive.

Common names: IDN: bunga bangkai; ENG: giant voodoo lily, corpse flower, titan arum Description: This herbaceous plant is reputed to have the tallest single inflorescence in the world which measures to over 3 m long or an average of 2 m long. A mature underground corm (tuber) weighing 30 kg or more produces a huge aroid bloom (the inflorescence) that is usually taller than most ASEAN basketball players. When the inflorescence first emerges, the spadix is completely enveloped in the spathe or bract, as it develops the growth rate accelerates rapidly. As a

Uses: The tubers are being dug up for food and collection.

This plant is famous for being the tallest inflorescence in the world. The species is a major attraction to botanic gardens at times of flowering.

Photo by Bogor Botanic Garden

Distribution and habitat: Its only known habitat is the rainforests of Sumatra.

Habit

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Azollaceae

Azolla pinnata R. Br.

A

zolla, “the wonder fern”, is commonly known for its nitrogen-fixing role in enhancing soil fertility, but it is a healthy food for humans as well.

Description: The Azolla plant is a water fern. The genus Azolla is made up of two Greek words: azo (to dry) and ollyo (to kill) meaning “dries it dies”. There are 6 existing species of Azolla in the world and the one naturally occurring in the ASEAN region is A. pinnata R. Br. The natural habitat of an Azolla plant is water-filled ponds, fields, lakes, and rivers. As a free floating water fern, the plant is principally composed of the roots and the fronds (leaves). The fronds arise from the short stems, which also arise from the few roots freely hanging in the water. Together, the fronds give a triangular or polygonal appearance of the plant. The main stem or the point of attachment of the lateral branches, bears several alternating branches covered with small, alternate, overlapping leaves or lobes. Each leaf has two lobes of almost the same size. The upper lobes are green, obviously for photosynthetic function; the lower ones are colorless, transparent, and

Photo by M. David

Common names: PHL: azolla; THA: nae daeng (Bangkok); VNM: beo-dau; ENG: mosquito ferns, ferny azolla, water velvet

Habit

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159

Uses: Azolla is commonly known as fertilizer, green manure to rice fields and food supplement to pigs, poultry, and fishes. However, people knew little or do not know the benefit it can give to humans or even to infants, as a Azolla in a rice paddy potential healthy food. It has the following nutritional contents: crude protein (dry basis) 15% to 29%, ½ cup peanut, chopped or whole leaf protein concentrate 48% to 60%, beta-carotene Procedure: In a saucepan, put together chocolate and 53330.46 IU, crude fibre 14% to 17%, calcium 6%, and other margarine. Heat until margarine melts. Add sugar and vanilla. essential minerals (Fe, Mn, MG, Na, K, Cu, Zn, and amino Mix well. Add egg one at a time. When mixture gets smooth, acids). Azolla is used in baking in the form of powder and leaf mix flour and azolla leaf protein concentrate. Mix peanuts with protein concentrate. Here are two food recipes fortified with the batter or place on top of the brownies.

Azolla.

Humburger Fudge Brownies Ingredients: 2 kg ground beef, 1 tsp black pepper, 200 Ingredients: ½ cup margarine, 1 cup sugar, ¾ cup allg chopped azolla, 2 tsp salt, 1 cup chopped onion purpose flour, 40 g azolla leaf protein concentrate (12%)/1/2 Procedure: Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Mould mixture cup azolla powder, 2/3 cup chocolate, 1 tsp vanilla, 2 pcs eggs, into patties at ¾ in thick. Cook patties in a small amount of

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Photo by M. David

function probably mainly as a float. The roots hanging freely in the water originate from underside the stem and develop by proceeding from the base towards the top. The roots with many root hairs are weak and brittle and they behave like true roots once they touch the soil.

The roots are up to 1.5 cm long with the Southeast Asian species.

cooking oil. May be served with rice or as sandwich filling.

Gathered Azolla is applied as fertilizer directly by simply incorporating considerable amount into the rice paddy soil before transplanting rice seedlings. Azolla remains in the paddies until harvest time.

Azolla plant is associated with the blue-green alga, Anabaena azollae Strasburger which exists in the dominant cavities in the upper lobes of Azolla. The symbiotic relationship between Azolla-Anabaena has been found to be as good or better than the known legume-rhizobia symbiosis for the fixation of free nitrogen. Therefore, without Azolla’s association with Anabaena, the former may not be useful as a fertilizer.

Azolla can be mixed with poultry wastes and other biodegradable materials like rice straw to produce compost. It is very beneficial to the farmers by carrying high costs of commercial fertilizer. It provides nutrient value to the soil and is nonhealth hazard. Compost is used for rice and cultured mushroom production.

Distribution and habitat: Almost cosmopolitan, throughout the wet tropics and warm temperate regions.

Azolla is widely distributed and is found in ponds, ditches and channels containing stagnant water with a temperature range of 15 oC to 35 oC. It grows in aquatic habitats and absorbs nutrients mainly from water. In shallow water, the plant roots attach to the soil and absorb nutrients from the soil.

Nepenthaceae

Nepenthes rajah Hook. f.

R

ajah Brooke’s Pitcher Plant is the largest among the pitcher plants, which are known as the most extraordinary plants in the world. It is also known as “King of Pitcher plants”.

long raceme, the stalk 20 cm to 40 cm long. Tepals are elliptical to oblong. The female inflorescences are like the male ones, but the tepals are somewhat narrower. Fruits with valves 20 cm long and are short stalked, 10 mm to 20 mm long, narrowing towards both ends. Seeds thread-

shaped, 3 mm to 8 mm long. A large number of carnivorous species have been grown from seed using in vitro techniques. Micropropagation is also a useful technique for increasing the stocks of some of these species in cultivation.

Common names: BRN: sumboi-sumboi; MYS: periuk kera; ENG: pitcher plant

Photo by J. MacKinnon

Description: This is a terrestrial, epiphytic, climbing or scrambling shrub, up to 2 m tall, with a terete stem from 15 mm to 30 mm in diameter.

Leaves are leathery, with stalk, the blade oblong to lance-shaped, the top rounded, the midrib detaching to form a tendril of up to 3 cm long from the top, the base blunt or rounded, the stalk channelled. Lower pitchers subellipsoid, large, with 2 fringed wings of 4 cm to 9 cm wide. Upper pitchers rarely produced. Male inflorescences are long, 60 cm to 85 cm. The colon of the pitchers is purplish red and the margin or fringe round the mouth or orifice is rounded or slightly flattened, 25 mm to 35 mm wide. Male inflorescences are a

Uses: Pitcher plants are used medicinally in many different ways. The liquid in the young urn’s upper column, before it opens, is an astringent that soothes sore throats, inflammation, and disorders of the skin and eyes. According to some people, it can relieve sorrow and grief. Extracts of boiled plant roots have been used against dysentery and stomach complaints. In short, the whole plant is used for various natural cures.

Habit of N. villosa

Distribution and habitat: An unusual highland species found only in Mt Kinabalu and Mt Tambuyukon in Sabah, Malaysia where it grows among grasses and shrubs on ultramafic soils. Many related species occur in Southeast Asia. It is rare and protected.

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Rafflesiaceae

Rafflesia R. Brown

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he largest single flower on earth with no visible leaves, stem or roots.

in diameter in the center of the flower is a stout column with a grooved margin, the male flowers with numerous stamens occurring on the column, in females the same area is occupied by stigmas. The flower is reddish orange with whitish warts in a series of 12 rows. Its rarity is also due to

Common names: ENG: rafflesia

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Uses: The bud was once sought after as a traditional medicine. The buds were boiled in water and the decoction given to recuperating new mothers to help them regain their strength after giving birth.

Photo by DENR-CENRO, Sabalom National Park

Description: Rafflesia is a genus of about 14 species in the ASEAN region. The species are total parasites, invading the stems or roots of other flowering plants especially the species of Tetrastigma and Cissus belonging to the family of the grapes. Flowers of this species are the largest and probably the second stinkiest in the world.

There is no vegetative part of the plant except the scaly bracts below each single flower and a kind of mycelium which branches through the host cambium. The flower buds begin their development inside the host and then push through the surface producing the flowers that have angiospermous characteristics. Flower measures a meter in diameter and weighs about 7 kg. Petals which are usually 5 grow to half a meter long and 2.5 cm thick; opening or diaphragm is about 10 cm

its complicated propagation process. For pollination to occur, for instance, there has to be a male and female flower blooming at the same time in the same vicinity. Large mammals are thought to be needed to transfer the seed into a crack in a new vine.

Habit of R. speciosa

ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Distribution and habitat: Rafflesia is found in Southeast Asia where 14 species are known to exist. But these specimens are found only in a few localised habitats. Eight species are found in Borneo while three species have been seen in Peninsular Malaysia; they are the Rafflesia cantleyi, R. hasseltii and R. kerrii; and three in the Philippines (R. speciosa, R. manillana and R. schadenbergiana). Rafflesia arnoldii grows in the dense jungles of Sumatra and Borneo. The Mount Kinabalu area has the largest concentration of known Rafflesia sites in the world.

Spices Spices

Lauraceae

Cinnamomum Schaeffer

C

innamomum species are among the oldest of spices of Southeast Asia.

Common names: BRN: kayu manis, lawang (Brunei Malay), kedayan (Dusun); IDN: kayu manis; MYS: kayu manis; MMR: chek tum phka loeng; PHL: cinnamon, kanela; SGP: cinnamon; VNM: que, re (general), que ranh, que tren, que quang re; ENG: cassia, cinnamon Description: The genus is a large group comprising of 150 to 250 species. However, in the ASEAN Region only 3 important species, C. burmanii, C. cassia, and C. loureirii are the sources of the spice commonly called cassia and cinnamon. They are composed of shrubs, medium- and large-sized trees. The trunk is branchless up to about 30 m, with short or without buttresses. The bark surfaces are smooth, rarely fissured, greyish-brown to reddish brown; the inner bark granular, pale-brown to pink, with strong aroumatic smell. The leaves are usually arranged opposite, subopposite, alternate or arranged spirally, simple and entire, aromatic when crushed, 3-veined, rarely pinnately veined; the stipules absent.

The inflorescences are axillary on terminal cymose panicles of clusters or in umbrella-grouped flowers; flowers are bisexual; tepals are united into a tube at the base, usually hairy. The fruit is a one-seeded berry, globose, ovoid to cylindrical and

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with hardened base. The seeds have a thin seed cover.

Uses: The dried immature fruits of C. cassia, known as cassia buds or ‘bunga lawang’ are used as flavouring. They have a cinnamon-like odour and sweet pungent flavour, and are extensively used in sweet pickles. In traditional customs, a pair of cassia buds are part of a potion to be drunk by bride and groom.

Although the Ceylon cinnamon (C. verum) is more widely used in household, the dried inner bark of the 3 types of cassia is similarly used for flavouring foods, domestically and industrially. It is used in flavouring meat and fast food seasonings, sauces and pickles, baked goods, confectionery, cola-type drinks, hot beverages, tobacco flavours; dental and pharmaceutical preparations; perfumery applications.

Powdered cassia bark is listed in the British Herbal Phamacopoeia as a specific remedy for flatulent dyspepsia or colic with nausea. The barks of all 3 species are well-known folk medicines for a long list of ailments such as diarrhoea, gripe, malaria, coughs, and chest complaints. It is also used in teas and other galenicals for its antibacterial, carminative, and fungistatic properties, and also for loss of appetite and dyspeptic disturbances.

Cinnamomum timber or camphorwood is a light- to medium-weight hardwood used for decorative work, furniture, and is suitable for making plywood. The heavier

timber is used for construction under cover. The fragrant wood is very suitable for making moth-proof chests.

Cinnamomum trees (in Indonesia C. burmannii, in particular) are frequently planted as wayside and shade trees. Propagation is by rooted cuttings, air layerings, and seedlings.

Distribution and habitat: Cinnamomum species occur in continental Asia, Malesia, Australia, the Pacific; and a few species in Central and South America.

C. burmanni is distributed in Malesia. It is cultivated in Indonesia (Java, Sumatra) and the Philippines. C. cassia occurs in South China, Burma (Myanmar), Laos and Vietnam. It has been introduced into Indonesia, and Sri Lanka. It was also brought into South America, the southern US and Hawaii. It is only commercially cultivated in China and Vietnam. C. loureirii naturally occurs in the mountains of Annam (Vietnam), where it has also been cultivated.

Cinnamomum are mostly tropical forest trees, adapted to a wide range of climatic conditions occurring between 30°N and 30°S. They tolerate short periods of waterlogging or drought. As forest trees, they are partially shade tolerant, but mature trees grow well in full sunshine. They occur on well-drained, leached hillside soils of low fertility and strong acidity (pH 4 tp pH 6).

Leaves and inflorescence of Cinnamomum sp (opposite page); barks in rolls (inset)

Photo by A. Baja-Lapis

Photo by J. MacKinnon

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Zingiberaceae

Kaempferia galanga L. Common names: IDN: kencur, cekur (general), bataka (North Sulawesi, Ternate, Tidore); LAO: van van hom; MYS: cekur, cekur Jawa, cengkur (Peninsular); PHL: gisol (general), disok (Iloko), dusol (Tagalog); THA: pro lom, hom pro (central), wan tin din, wan phaen din yen, wanhom (northern); VNM: dia li[eef]n, s[ow]n nai, tam n[aj]i; ENG: East-Indian galangal Description: Galangal is a perennial, rhizomatous, and short-stemmed herb. The rhizomes are branched, tuberous, thicker near the attachment to the stem or sometimes cylindrical, with rootlets towards the end of tubers. The roots often bear small tubers. The leaves are few with only 2 to 5, the sheaths are up to 5 cm long, leaf blade often horizontal and appressed to the soil, broadly elliptic to suborbicular, acuminate, smooth above, underneath with hairs entangled like a spider’s web. The inflorescences emerge between the leaves and are without stalks, the corolla white, labellum broadly obovate, white or pale purple with violet or purple spots at the base. Fruits are thin-walled, the capsule dehiscent.

Seeds are few to many, ellipsoid to nearly round with

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torn seed covering (aril). Propagation is by rhizome pieces 2.5 cm to 4 cm long, with at least 2 to 3 buds; both the younger and older parts of rhizomes may be used; and by tissue culture using rhizome explants with vegetative buds.

Uses: Rhizomes of K. galanga are widely known as flavouring for various dishes and rice. In Indonesia, leaves of K. galanga

are eaten raw in ‘lablab’ or cooked as a vegetable. It is also an ingredient in perfumery and cosmetics, fermentation agent, and production of ‘kretek’ cigarettes.

Leaves and rhizomes are applied externally as a poultice to treat abdominal pains and as an embrocation or sudorific (an agent causing sweating) to treat swellings, inflammations, and muscular rheumatism. Pounded rhizomes are also applied to traumatic injuries and nose bleeding. Mixed with rice flour, they are used in ‘beras kencur’, a refreshing drink used as a sudorific.

In the Philippines, the whole plant is applied as a remedy for common colds. A decoction of rhizomes is a tonic and carminative gargle, and a remedy for dyspepsia and malarial chills, and given after childbirth. It is also well-known in Chinese medicine as a remedy for toothache or a wash to treat dandruff or scabs on the head.

Photo by V. Lamxay

T

his spice plant is strongly aromatic and medicinal.

Flowers of Kaempferia sp (above); habit of K. galanga (opposite page)

Distribution and habitat: Possibly native only to India, where it is widespread. It is cultivated throughout Southeast Asia, including southern China, in Malesia east to the Moluccas, possibly also introduced in northern Australia. It thrives best in slightly shaded places such as open forest, forest edges, and bamboo forest, on various soils, up to 1000-m altitude.

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Photo by M. David

Myristicaceae

Myristica fragrans Houtt.

I

nterestingly, the tree produces both nutmeg and mace, and grows up to 60 ft tall. Although the tree takes seven years to bear fruit, it may produce until the 90th year. Both spices come from the tree’s fruit.

Common names: BRN: pala; KHM: pôch kak; IDN: pala pala banda; LAO: chan th’e:d; MYS: pala; MMR: mutwinda; PHL: duguan; SGP: pokok pala; THA: chan thet (central), chan-ban (Shan-Northern); VNM: dau khau; ENG: nutmeg Description: Nutmeg is an evergreen, small, dioecious tree attaining from 5 m to 20 m tall, if growing away from other trees, the crown is conical in shape. Bark is greyish-brown and when cut, it exudes a light red sap, a generic character for all species of Myristica. Leaves are alternate, simple, without stipules, papery thin; the stalk is about 1 cm long; leaf blades are elliptic to lanceolate, base acute, margin entire, apex acuminate, aromatic when crushed. The inflorescences are axillary, in umbrella-like grouped flowers, male usually many-flowered, female 1 to 3 flowers only; flowers are fragrant, with fine hairs becoming smooth, pale yellow, floral envelopes 3-lobed; male flowers with slender stalk of less

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than 1 mm thick, usually narrowed at the base and with 8 to 12 stamens; female flowers with superior stalkless 1- celled ovary. Fruits are peach-shaped berry or drupe-like, fleshy, yellowish, splitting open into halves when ripe, containing only one ovoid seed, with a shiny dark brown, hard and stony furrowed and longitudinally wrinkled shell, enveloped by an aril cut into narrow parts that is attached to its base, the kernel with a small embryo and a chewed-up endosperm that contains many veins containing essential oils. The endosperm and the aril are the sources of nutmeg and mace, respectively. Propagation is by seed and vegetative methods.

Uses: The nutmeg products, dry shelled seed (nutmeg) and dried aril (mace) are sold as spices whole or ground. In most countries, grated nutmeg is used in small quantities to flavour confectionery but in western Europe it is also used in meat dishes and soups. Mace is preferably used in savoury dishes, pickles, and ketchups. Essential oil (mostly nutmeg oil from the seed and mace oil from the aril, but also from the bark, leaf and flower) and extracts are often used in the canning industry, in soft drinks and in cosmetics. Nutmeg oil is extensively used to flavour major food products. The essential oil has insecticidal, fungicidal, and bactericidal properties.

Medicinally, nutmeg is said to have stimulant, carminative, astringent, and aphrodisiac properties. It is also used to treat fever, asthma, heart disease, digestive disorders, kidney disease, and lymphatic ailments. Young husks (pericarps) are made into confectionery (jellies, marmalades, sweets and preserves, very popular in West Java and Malaysia). The old husks can be used as substrate to grow the popular edible mushroom ‘kulat pala’ [Volvariella volvacea (Bull. ex Fr.) Sing], which possesses a light nutmeg flavour. Nutmeg butter, a fixed oil obtained by pressing the seeds, is used in ointments and perfumery. Both spices are considered toxic when consumed in large quantities.

Distribution and habitat: Nutmeg is only known from cultivation but it most probably originated from Indonesia and the southern Moluccan Islands. Nutmeg and mace (the dried aril) spread from there and became known throughout Southeast Asia.

Nutmeg needs a warm and humid tropical climate, with average temperatures of 25°C to 30°C and average annual rainfall of 2000 mm to 3500 mm without any real dry period.

Flowering can be adversely affected by temperatures above 35°C and by hot dry winds.

SPICES Fruits Photo by J. MacKinnon

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Piperaceae

Piper nigrum L.

P

(mostly in cultivars), devoid of floral covering. The fruits are globose drupe, without stalks, with pulpy mesocarp, red when mature. Seed only one, globose, 3 mm to 4 mm in diameter.

Common names: BRN: lada sulah; KHM: mréch IDN: lada, merica LAO: ph’ik no:yz, ph’ik th’ai; MYS: lada, biji lada, kuru-mulagu; MMR: ngayok-kaung; PHL: paminta, paminta-liso (Cebuano), pamienta (Ilocano); SGP: pepper; THA: phrik thai (central), phrik noi (northern); VNM: tieu, ho tieu; ENG: pepper, black pepper

Uses: Black and white peppers are the two main dried commodities growers prepare from the fruits of P. nigrum.

These are used as food flavouring and preserving processed foods. In spite of its origin, there is a lack of tradition in the consumption of both types of pepper in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the adjacent countries of Southeast Asia. In recent decades, its use as a spice flavour and food preservatives has gained inroads in the region’s spicy cuisine.

Pepper oil and pepper oleoresin, extracted from peppercorns, are mainly used in the production of conve-

Description: Pepper is a perennial woody climber that reaches over 10 m tall. But in cultivation, it may also appear as bushy columns of about 3 m to 4 m tall depending upon the height of its support peg and 1.25 m in diameter. The root system has 5 to 20 main roots of about 4 m deep and with several feeder roots in the upper half meter deep of soil; thus, forming an extensive dense mat of roots. The vertical stems climb and remain vegetative adhering to the pegs by means of the adventitious roots but produces secondary branchlets and inflorescences. The leaves are alternate, simple, smooth, leathery; the leaf blade ovate, entire, base rounded or oblique, apex acuminate, shiny dark green above and pale beneath. The inflorescence is a spike appearing opposite the leaves on horizontal branches. The flowers are unisexual or bisexual

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nience foods. Of secondary importance is the use of preserved immature green pepper or fresh green pepper fruits.

Stem cutting is used for propagating.

In Southeast Asia, pepper harvesting extends from April-June to August-September. This period generally coincides with dry weather and sunshine. To obtain black pepper, the entire fruit spikes are picked when the fruits are full-grown and mature but still green. For white pepper, fruit spikes are collected when a few fruits have turned red or yellow. Fruit spikes are harvested by hand.

P. nigrum is also medicinally used for intestinal gas, rheumatism, and muscular pain, stomach pain, cold sores, hernia;, sprain circulatory disorders, varicose veins, headache, migraine, dizziness, osteoporosis, cold sweats, fatigue and tiredness, impotence, lower back ache, frigidity, irregular menstruation, influenza, low blood pressure, asthma, cough, indigestion, sinusitis, tonsillitis, and itching of the eyes.

Photos by M. David

epper, rightly called the King of Spices, is one of the oldest and best-known spices in the whole world.

Black seeds (above); immature seeds (opposite page); habit (inset)

Distribution and habitat: Pepper is native to India. It reached Southeast Asia as early as 100 BC. The most suitable climate for pepper is per-humid tropical, with a well-distributed annual rainfall of 2000 mm to 4000 mm associated with a mean air temperature of 25 OC to 30OC and a relative humidity of 65% to 95%. Pepper grows well on soils ranging from heavy clay to light sandy clays.

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Myrtaceae

Syzygium aromaticum (L.) Merr. & Perry

T

he clove S. aromaticum is strongly aromatic and intensively fragrant but is fiery and burning to taste.

Description: Slender, evergreen tree, up to 20 m tall with conical crown when young, later becoming cylindrical; in cultivation, however, it is smaller and develops branches near the base. Roots are a dense mat close to the ground surface.

Leaves are opposite, simple, smooth; the stalks 1 cm to 3 cm long, reddish, thickened at the base; leaf blade elliptical to obovate-oblong, base acute, top acuminate, leathery, shiny, gland-dotted. Inflorescences are in terminal panicles of about 5 cm long with 3 to 40 bisexual flowers, usually borne in cymose groups of 3; flower buds 1 cm to 2 cm long, constituting the cloves just before opening; calyx tubular, about 1 cm to 1.5 cm long, yellowish-green, petals 4, united, reddish, rounded, about 6 mm in diameter, shed off as the flowers open; stamens numerous, up to 7 mm long; pistil with a 2celled ovary; stigma is 2-lobed. Fruits (called the mother of cloves) obovoid-ellipsoid berry, 2 to 2.5 cm long, dark red,

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Photos by J. MacKinnon

Common names: BRN: cengkih; KHM: khan pluu, khlam puu; LAO: do:k chan, ka:nz ph’u; MYS: chengkeh, chingkeh; PHL: clavo de comer, klabong pako; THA: kan phlu; VNM: dinh huong; ENG: clove

Habit (above); leaves (opposite page)

ache and halitosis; they are also a stimulant and carminative.

Over 90% of the cloves are used with tobacco to produce ‘kretek’ cigarettes, which are smoked mainly in Indonesia. When used as spice, the dried clove buds are ground; or the oleoresin is extracted and added in processing food. Distilling cloves yields oil used in the flavouring and perfumery. Lesser quality oils are distilled from the flower stalks (‘clove stems’), a by-product of the clove harvest (Zanzibar) and from the leaves (Madagascar and Indonesia).

The major component of the oil is eugenol. Because of its flavour and antiseptic properties, eugenol is used in making soaps, detergents, toothpaste, and pharmaceutical products.

The oil is also a potent bactericide and nematicide. It is indicated for inflamed oral and pharyngeal mucosa and is used for topical anaesthesia in dentistry.

usually containing only 1 oblong and about 1.5 cm long seed.

Uses: Since ancient times, the clove has been highly valued as a spice by the Chinese. In the early Middle Ages, the spice became increasingly important. Buds are ingredients in many classic spice mixtures. Whole cloves are frequently used to flavour broths and soups of all meats. They are ground and used in classic sauces baking and processed meats.

In Southeast Asia, the clove and the flower bud is medicinally used than to flavour food. Cloves suppress tooth-

Distribution and habitat: The clove tree is endemic in the North Moluccas (Indonesia) and the southern Philippines. It is also cultivated in Asia, Africa, South America, and the West Indies.

In Indonesia, cloves for ‘kretek’ cigarettes require less than 60-mm rainfall for 3 mo, while for cloves used as spice, rainfall should not drop below 80 mm in any month. Annual rainfall should exceed 1500 mm. With mean temperatures of 21oC in July and August, Madagascar is the coolest clove country at the Tropic of Capricorn.

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Timber Timber

Leguminosae: Mimosoideae

Adenanthera L.

H

istory accounts many practical uses of the species of Adenanthera among Southeast Asians. These uses range from construction to medicinal purposes. Now, it has become an important plant worldwide in fixing nitrogen. It is easily identified with its distinctly twisted pods.

Description: The species of the genus have smallto medium-sized trees reaching 30 m to 40 m tall. The trunk is straight and cylindrical in medium-sized trees but short and crooked in smaller trees. With mediumsized, it can reach up to a 100 cm in diameter at breast height. Buttresses are present in larger-sized trees but small and short with bark surface smooth to cracked, fissured or flaky, reddish brown to brown, grey-brown or pinkish-grey; inner bark soft, pale brown. The crown is spreading, diffuse, and uneven. The leaves are arranged spirally without

176

obovoid or orbicular that stays suspended for long periods.

Propagation can be by seeds and cuttings.

Uses: The strong and durable characteristics make the wood ideal for major construction purposes such as bridges, houses, beams, and posts. With its even-grained and red-colour heartwood with light grey sapwood, the wood is best for furniture, cabinets and turnery. It is a good source of charcoal too particularly the wood of A. pavonina. A fiveyear old plantation of this species can already produce quality charcoal.

Seeds are roasted and eaten, which have high percentage of protein and fatty acids for good digestions not only in humans but livestock as well.

The leaves are fodder to livestock, easily digested and used as green manure. The bright red seeds are used as fashion ornaments, made into necklace and earrings.

Photo by M. David

Common names: IDN: saga (general); LAO: sak (general), mai-sak; MYS: saga (general); MMR: ywe, ywegyi; PHL: tanglin; THA: ma klam (general), ma daeng (northern), phai (peninsular); VNM: lim v[af]ng, tr[aws] qu[aj]ch; ENG: coralwood, coral bean

glands; leaflets alternate, entire, stipules small, early falling.

Inflorescences terminal and axillary, many-flowered, simple, spike-like racemes, solitary or few together. Flowers are in fives, small, with jointed pedicels; calyx lobes and petals are valvate; stamens 10, free; ovary superior, one-locular with many ovules, style simple. Fruits strap-shaped, straight to spirally twisted, many seeded pod, dehiscent along sutures.

Seeds red or red and black, shiny, broadly, ellipsoid to broadly

Habit of Adenanthera sp (above); dried pods with seeds and leaves (opposite page); trunk (inset)

ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Distribution and habitat: It is distributed in various forests: primary, secondary, evergreen, dry deciduous rain forest, and in open vegetation, from sea level to 900-m altitude. In swampy areas (peat and fresh), A. kostermansii is found growing. It grows in any type of soil and even rocky areas.

Photo by J. MacKinnon

TIMBER

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Photo by M. David

Araucariaceae

Agathis Salisb.

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t is the only genus of the family Araucariaceae that thrives well in tropical countries like the Southeast Asia.

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Common names: BRN: bindang, tulong; IDN: samara (Java), dammar sigi (Sumatra), dammar bindang (Kalimantan); MYS: dammar minyak (general), mengilan (Sabah), bindang (Sarawak); PHL: almaciga (general), bidiangao (Negros), bagtik (Palawan); THA: son-khaomao (Bangkok); ENG: amboyna pitch tree; kauri

borne in the axils of leaves or terminal, supported by pairs of scales with cup-like base composing of many spirally arranged stalked organs containing at most 12 pollen sacs. The seed cones (female inflorescence) are terminal, oval and woody, made up of scales which when fertilized by the pollen from the male cones, contain one seed per scale. The seeds which are attached at the base of the seed scales are more or less flattened and roundish in shape, the margin on one side expanded into 9 membranous wings, and on the other side expanded into a rudimentary wing.

Description: The species of Agathis (about 8 in ASEAN region) are medium to very large trees, attaining a height of 65 m and a diameter at breast height of 200 cm to 400 cm.

The trees have straight cylindrical bole and a conical crown when still young. The bark is light greyish brown, smooth at first then irregularly rounded flakes peel off leaving hoopmarks that are lighter-coloured; the inner bark when tapped exudes a transluscent resin which when dry and harvested are called “Manila copal” or “dammar” of commerce. The twigs are somewhat stout, smooth, with the terminal buds rather roundish at the top. The leaves are simple, alternate, entire, short-stalked, leathery, the blade ovate, oblong to elliptic, smooth, parallel veins form the base to the top rather not prominent. The pollen cones (male inflorescence) are

Uses: Kauri is useful for two major reasons: as source of timber for general wood work applications and in the production of “copal’ resin.

Softwood kauri is popularly used for specific purposes based on its wood qualities. It is lightwood and shows good physical attributes such as very fine and evenly textured, and lustrous planed surface. It is ideal for making drawing boards, ruler, match sticks, matchboxes, pencils, furniture, battery separators, piano parts, and artificial limbs. Choice of kauri is for making joinery, post or support especially in boats, construction under cover, panelling, turnery, mouldings, packaging, and foundry pattern-making.

Kauri wood is odourless, hence it is more particularly used as household utensils and food containers.

ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

It is also decorative due to its attractive colour and moderate shrinkage and no significant characteristics of drying defects. It is also ideal for making veneers, plywoods, wood wool boards, wrapping, writing, and printing paper, and rayon grade pulp.

Kauri is a source of resin called “copal”, transluscent or clear white used in the commercial manufacture of varnish, linoleum, and paints. Locally, its other uses include as a torch, incense, illumination, sealing wax, making patent leather, liniment and against leeches attacks. Formerly, the Philippines was one of the largest exporters, hence the trade name “Manila copal”.

For other applications, kauri is used to produce charcoal and activated carbon. It is a good plantation species.

Distribution and habitat: Kauri is naturally distributed from Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo, Sulawesi, Palawan, the Moluccas, New Guinea, and New Britain towards western Australia, the Solomon Islands, New Caledonia, Vauatu, Fiji, and northern New Zealand. It is introduced to Java, India, Mauritius, tropical Africa, South Africa, and Central America. It normally occurs from 2000-m to 2400-m asl. It thrives in areas with annual rainfall of 2000 mm to 4000 mm and seasonal climate.

Bark of A. philippinensis

Photos by M. David

Leaves of A. bornensis

Photo by A. Baja-Lapis

Habit (left); resin exudates (above)

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Apocynaceae

Alstonia scholaris (L.) R. Br.

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f the six species of timber-producing trees in Alstonia, A. scholaris is the most widely distributed and important source of pulai (the trade name for timbers produced from Alstonia wood. The name ‘scholaris’ was derived from smoothened plank of school blackboard.

Description: This is a medium- to large-sized tree reaching to 45 m. The clear bole to the first main branch sometimes up to 20 m or more, cylindrical, sometimes in older trees the base is massively fluted and with stout buttresses of up to 6 m high, the outer bark smooth and sometimes peeling off

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usually splitting on one side. The seeds flattish, membranous, white, with hairs on both ends.

Uses: The wood of the species is light but it is highly valued because it yields good quality pulp called pulai. The species became popular in using the pulai in making school blackboards. Its other uses are for making crates and matchsticks.

With its other plant parts, this species has become important.

The bark, which appears in quills or irregular curved pieces, has bitter taste and is a source of important alkaloid-producing properties for medicines against malarial problems and chronic diarrhoea. It is also used to treat fever, earache, skin diseases, and to destroy parasitic worm. The latex is used in making chewing gum. It is also used to clean wounds.

The tree is also planted as an ornamental roadside tree in Thailand and Laos.

Photo by J. MavKinnon

Common names: BRN: pulai lilin; IDN: pulai (general), ritte (Ambon), pule (Java); LAO: tinpet; MYS: pulai (Peninsular); MMR: letpan-ga, taung-mayo, lettok; PHL: dita, dalipaoen; THA: ka-no (Karen-Mae Hong Son), chaban (Khmer-Prachinburi), chaba, tin pet, phaya sattaban (central), tin pet dam (Narathiwat), ba-sa, pu-la, pu-lae (Malay-Yala, Pattani), yang khao (Lampang), sattaban (central, Khmer-Chanthaburi), hatsabon (Kanchanaburi); SGP: pulai; VNM: mo cua, sua, mong cua; ENG: milky pine, white cheesewood

in small papery thin flakes, light brown to yellowish-white, adorned with irregularly set corky postules and sometimes hoop-marks, the inner bark yellow to brownish, usually tinged yellow, exuding copiously with white latex. The leaves are simple, whorled, 5 to 8 spatulate leaves in a whorl on a 2-cm to 3-cm long petiole, margin entire, leathery, smooth, dark green beneath. The flowers are a cyme, bisexual, regular; there are 5 sepals, united at the base. The petals, 5 and united at base with free lobes. The fruit, a follicle, smooth,

Flowers and leaves of Alstonia sp

ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Distribution and habitat: It is widely distributed throughout Southeast Asia, southern China, Malesia, Sri Lanka, India, northern Australia, the Bismarck Archipelago, and the Solomon Islands. It is abundant in monsoon areas and grows in any soil condition in areas up to 500m to 1000-m altitude.

Photos by M. David

Habit (left); trunk (above)

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Dipterocarpaceae

Dipterocarpus Gaertner f.

Common names: BRN: keruing; KHM: thbaèng, khlông, chhe: ti:ël; IDN: lagan (Sumatra), tempudau kerup (Kalimantan); LAO: nha:ng; MYS: keruing; MMR: kanyin, engin; PHL: apitong, panau; SGP: keruing THA: yang-n (general), yang-khon (Chanthaburi), yang-pai (northern); VNM: dau, dau long, dai rai, dau dong, dau tra beng, cho cho nau; ENG: Indonesian gurjun, keruing Description: Member species of this genus are generally large trees reaching 65 m tall with a clear bole of up to 35 m and a diameter above buttress of from 150 cm to 260 cm. Trunks are generally straight with relatively small crown and with small buttresses or none at all. The Philippine species have generally scaly bark, grey or light brown, covered with scattered corky postules outside, shedding in irregular patches and usually

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

less than 2.5 cm in thickness; other species growing in similar situations display the same bark characteristics but there are species with deeply fissured and thick bark which seems to be suited to resistance to the frequent ground fires. The twigs are generally thick with distinct stipular scars. All species exude resinous sap which thickens after a cut. The leaves are simple, alternate, leathery when mature, generally large, seedling leaves membranaceous, usually entire but sometimes retuse or even dentate in some species; stipules are large, separated at the base end sometimes embraced the twigs. Inflorescences are few flowered, simple, sometimes branched, flowers large, receptacle concave. Bases of the petals are often coherent but not united, finely stellately hairy outside. The stamens are usually many, sometimes only 15; anthers linear, sometimes twisted, appendage to connective extended into a long tapering point, smooth; ovary generally hairy, fruiting calyx-tube enveloping the fruit with 2 lobes strongly increasing in size with age.

The fruits free from calyx are woody, indehiscent with 1 or 2 seeds.

Photos by M. David

T

he genus consists of about 70 species known to produce the sought-after timber in the world which can only be found in the Indo-Malayan region.

Bark of D. kunsleri (left); habit (opposite page); winged fruits (inset)

Uses: Keruing is an important wood to Southeast Asians, used in varied indoor applications from light to heavy and general construction. Plywood industry and wood oil production are two main activities involving keruing trading internationally.

Wood is durable and is easy to work on. Its many uses include among others, furniture, flooring, beams, joists, rafters, staircase stringers, wharf and bridge decking, keels and framework, framework of carriages and wagons, wagons flooring, container flooring, truck bodywork, railroad ties, boats, gymnasium equipment, veneer, plywood, pulp, crates, toys, boxes, and tools and tool handles. If treated with preservatives specifically creosote, it is an excellent wood for outdoor uses like powerline and transmission posts, piles, fences, railway sleepers, shipbuilding, saltwater piling harbour works, and bridges.

Resin also obtained from the bark used in making baskets and torches, waterproofing boats, and medicinal purposes.

Distribution and habitat: It is found in Southeast Asia, Sri Lanka, India, and southern China. It is found in evergreen forest, semievergreen forest or savanna woodlands from 1000-m to 1400-m altitude. Most species grow in association with other plants like pine in the case of D. obtusifolius.

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Myrtaceae

Eucalyptus deglupta Blume

Common names: IDN: leda (general), galang (Sulawesi), aren (Moluccas); MMR: bagras; PHL: bagras (general); banikag (Agusan), anananit (Zamboanga); SGP: Mindanao gum; VNM: bach dan vo day; ENG: Mindanao gum, rainbow eucalyptus Description: This small to very large tree, which is the only Eucalyptus species whose natural distribution crosses the equator, grows up to 60 m to 85 m tall. The stem is generally well-shaped, rounded in cross-section or generally of good form, about 50 % to 70 % of the total height, up to 200 cm in diameter at breast height, sometimes having knee-like growths of the base of the stem or root of about 3 m to 4 m high; bark smooth, yellowish or straw-colour, brownish or purplish but with longitudinal or patches of green after outside dead bark shed off or flaked; small twigs with leaves square in cross-section, often with longitudinal appendages or narrow wing; young leaves arranged opposite each other, old leaves opposite, subopposite or alternately arranged and held almost horizontal on twigs, shape of leaves like a longitudinal section of the hen’s

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

egg to longer than broad, usually rounded fast-growing quality and low maintenance at the base, distinctly and sharply pointed or requirement. Propagation is by seed or by gradually tapering point to the top, with cutting from a branch of less than 2 years short leaf stalk. The disposition or arrangeold trees. The best result is cutting the ment of the flower axis compound is located branch containing a stem node and a at the top of the twig or arising between segment of a leaf. In addition, it is a major the twig and the base of the stalk of the source of pulp for paper production. leaves, a cluster of flower stalks arising It is also a source of oil found in large from the same point; young unopened quantity in the twigs and leaves. The flower rounded, thickened towards the top presence of natural oil makes the tree with short and sharp point, the cover or lid popular also in producing quality charcoal Multi-coloured bark (above); splitting transversely in half, broader than for the production of iron and steel. habit (opposite page) long, the outer one early falling. The fruits Eucalypt oil is used in making pharmaceutiare egg-shaped to club-shaped or rounded, with very small cal and hygienic products like liniments or cough medication, vessels. Seeds small, brown, grey or black. soap, perfumes, disinfectant, and pesticides. The bark has tanning effect. Flowers produce good pollen and nectar for Uses: The wood is suited for general use, both for light and making honey. heavy construction and indoor and outdoor application like floorings, window frames, doors, interior finish, railway sleepers Distribution and habitat: Native to the Philippines, and posts. It is even use in building boats and ships, carts and Moluccas, New Guinea, and New Britain. It is adapted to crates, joinery, implement handles, particle board, veneer, lowland and lower montane rainforest habitats. It thrives well in plywood, hard board, and sporting goods. These uses are non-stagnant riverflats with adequate soil moisture and on possible to the kind of wood of rainbow eucalypt because of its deep, moderately fertile sandy loams but also on volcanic ash, natural resistance against pest attack. pumice and gravel soils. It grows typically in pure stands from The tree is most useful in reforestation because of its sea level up to 1800-m altitude.

Photos by M. David

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he trunk of this tree has a distinct feature where the thin outer bark is peeled-off from the trunk gradually throughout the year exposing irregularly spaced combination of light-green and pastel colours.

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Lauraceae

Eusideroxylon zwageri Teijsm. & Binnend.

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ron wood is what the species is known for because of its exceptionally very hard and extremely dense wood that sinks in water. It grows very slow but it lasts long.

Common names: BRN: belian, belian batu, belian simpor (Brunei Malay); IDN: belian (general), onglen (Sumatra), tulian, tebelian (Kalimantan), ulin, kajoe besi; MYS: belian (Sarawak, Sabah) im muk (Cantonese, Sabah), tambulian (Sabah), ulin; PHL: tambulian, sakian, biliran (Sulu); SGP: belian; ENG: ironwood, bellian Description: The ironwood is a medium- to large-sized tree reaching a height of 40 m to 50 m with 150 cm to 200 cm in diameter at breast height. The trunk is sometimes fluted at the base with prominent, many, small, and rounded buttresses and at times branchless to about 20 m high. Outside bark is reddish to chocolate brown with irregular cracks, flaking from below up. The leaves are spirally arranged, simple, entire, leathery, elliptic or ovate, the base rounded to subcordate, obtuse to shortly acuminate at the top, the upper surface smooth, underneath surface hairy only on the larger veins; stipules are absent. Inflorescences are axillary and in panicles, dense, drooping, and densely short-hairy. Flowers bisexual, regular, greenish, yellow or purplish, finely hairy

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

outside. Fruits are a drupe on a thick stalk, 1 or 2 in each panicle with only one seed. The seeds are large with hard seed covering, furrowed, brittle, and pale-colored.

Uses: The timber is characterized as durable, long-lasting, and heavy, which is ideal in house construction, water butts, heavy construction, marine work, boat-building, printing blocks, industrial flooring, roofing, tool handles, and furniture. In Borneo, the timber is used in building traditional longhouses. Using the wood as roof shingles could last to 50 years or more. For the Chinese, it has been valued for making coffins. Other uses are for flooring, making boards, frames, road pavement, foundations, railway sleepers, fencing, vehicle bodies, cart sleds, furniture, chopsticks, blowpipes, pegs, and plant post. The fruit is poisonous but has medicinal value.

Distribution and habitat: It is widespread in lowlands of Sabah extending into the remainder of Borneo, other Indonesian islands, and the Philippines (Sulu and Palawan). It thrives in a area with 2500 mm to 4000 mm average rainfall. It prefers well-drained soils in valleys or on hillsides or often low ridges when soil moisture is sufficient. It grows in areas with 500 m to 623 m in altitude, in soil characterized as sandy soils of tertiary origin, clay-loam or sandy siltloam and limestone (for larger trees). It grows with other trees but often dominant and may form a pure stand.

Photo by M. David

Habit (left); trunk (above)

Photo by A. Baja-Lapis

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Thymelaeaceae

Gonystylus bancanus (Miq.) Kurz

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alaysia and Indonesia were the biggest exporters of this species to the European countries in the form of sawn timber. Due to over exploitation and loss of habitat, it is now considered as a vulnerable species on the IUCN list.

Description: This is a medium to fairly large tree of up to 40 m to 45 m tall and 120 cm in diameter at breast height. The trunk is branchless to 21 m high, the base is sometimes fluted with numerous roots as breathing organ or knee-roots. Outer bark is greyish to red-brown, often cracked and shallowly fissured, the inner bark fibrous, orange-brown to red-brown. The leaves are smooth, leathery, elliptic, shortly oblong-oblanceolate or obovate, frequently folded lengthwise, quite smooth, veins numerous, almost parallel but not reaching the margin. Inflorescences are paniculate, usually terminal, finely layed-

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Uses: Ramin is a valued commercial timber which has the characteristics for indoor construction use with its whitish, light to moderate heavy wood. It is easy to work with in different applications, however, it has a tendency to split

using nails. It is extensively used for veneer, plywood, and particle, and blackboard manufacturing. It is popular for wall panelling, blinds slats, dowels, ruler, picture frames, boards, and decorative furniture, flooring, tools, turnery, and handles intended for no-impact use. The wood is used as raw materials for light construction such as door and window frames, mouldings, skirtings, ceilings, partitions, stair treads, and counter tops.

The wood can be easily treated with preservatives, a necessary process because the wood is prone to blue stain and insect attack, especially termites and fungi.

Photos by M. David

Common names: BRN: ramin; IDN: ramin (general), gaharu buaya (Sumatra, Kalimantan), merang (Kalimantan); MYS: ramin melawis, melawis, ramin telur (Peninsular), garu buaja (Sarawak)

flat hairy. Flowers have long stalks, calyx cup-like which are hairy inside, the petals, small, united at the base. Fruits are in capsules, woody, rounded opening at maturity. Seeds 1/ to 5/ capsule, smooth surface and black.

Leaves of G. velutinus (above); branch formation (opposite page)

ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Distribution and habitat: It is distributed in southwestern Peninsular Malaysia, southeastern Sumatra, Bangka and Borneo. It thrives in lowland freshwater swamp or peat-swamp forest outside the influence of tidal waters but often in broad belts along the coast. It occurs in areas with at most 100 m altitude. It is a dominant species of fresh water swamp and has advantage that it can grow back from cut stump. Even so the species has been overharvested and that it has become rare and in need of protection for many areas.

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Leguminosae: Caesalpinoideae

Intsia Thouars

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enus Intsia consists of important plants species as sources of quality timber. The species are preferred due to their “favourable physical and mechanical properties, combined with a high natural durability and an attractive appearance”. There are 8 species of Intsia, where 3 occur in the Malesia.

Description: This genus composed of three species in the ASEAN geographical area, are generally smallto large-sized trees 25 m to 50 m tall and 50 cm to 250 cm diameter at breast height, and branchless up to 22 m to the first branch; the bole in some trees are poorly shaped and with buttresses but other trees are straight-boled. The barks are grey to brown-red or greenish with pale patches resulting from peeledoff irregularly-shaped flakes, surfaces smooth to

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petal 1, and stamens 3. Fruits are borne on short stalks, thickly leathery pods with 3 or more hard and large flattish and rounded dark brown seeds.

Uses: Intsia is a major source of timber commercially used for a wide range of construction purposes and applicable both for indoor and outdoor uses such as the following: exterior joinery for windows, solid panel doors, framing, weatherboarding, high-grade and durable flooring even for heavy pedestrian use, furniture making, panelling, stairs, handrails, shop fittings, truck bodies, turnery, poles, fence posts, musical instruments and carving, bridges, wharves, sluices, sheet piles, and decorative veneer.

Another use of genus Intsia is as source of dye, which can be extracted from the oily substance of the wood and bark and medicinal values taken from the bark and leaves used to treat rheumatism, dysentery, diarrhoea, and urinary diseases.

Seeds are boiled and eaten after 3 to 4 days of being soaked.

Photos by M. David

Common names: BRN: merbau (Brunei Malay), ipil (Dusun); KHM: krâkâs prêk; IDN: ipil (general), kayu besi (Moluccas, Irian Jaya); MYS: merbau ipil (general); MMR: tattakun; PHL: ipil, ipil laut, malaipil; SGP: merbau; THA: pradu thale (central), lumpho thale (Surat thani), ngueba- la-o (Malay-Narathiwat); VNM: go nuoc (general); ENG: Malacca teak, mirabow, Molucccan ironwood

dimpled or scaly or sometimes with boat-shaped fissures or peeling off in small flakes; the inner bark are orange towards the outside and pale red to light yellowish brown inwards, fibrous or granularly layered. Leaves are alternately arranged, compound with leaflets in pairs of 2 to 5, opposite or subopposite, with stipules at the base; leaflets are paripinnate, the blades thinly to thickly leathery, glossy, with rounded to broadly cuneate base and blunt to emarginated top. Inflorescences are racemose or few branched terminal or axillary panicles; the flowers are white, light yellow or pink, sepals 4,

Bark of I. bijuga (above); habit (opposite page)

ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Distribution and habitat: It occurs from East Africa and Madagascar towards Melanesia, Micronesia, and northern Australia. Within Malesia, the most widespread is Intsia bijuga.

It thrives well in areas with rainfall of more than 2000 mm a year and grows in primary and old secondary forests on wide variety of soils but not on peat.

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Arecaceae

Oncosperma tigillarium (Jack.) Ridl.

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he species has been used in local mangrove development projects for constructing pens such as for crab culture.

Common names: BRN: nibong; KHM: ta-aon; IDN: bayas, nibong (general), erang (Sundanese), gendiwong (Javanese); MYS: bayas, nibong (general), anau (Sarawak), nibong pa saloi (Iban, Sarawak); MMR: kasaung; PHL: anibong (Tagalog); SGP: nibong; THA: chaon, lao chaon thung, lao chaon (peninsular), ni-bong (Malay-Pattani); VNM: nhum; ENG: nibong, thorn palm Description: Nibong is an erect palm where the male and female flowers are found in the same plant but on different flowers. It reaches a height of 20 m to 30 m and 20 cm to 25 cm in diameter at breast height. It is a clustering palm with sometimes reaching about 50 stems in a clump. Many parts of the palm are spiny. The trunk from the base to the first leaf up to the crown is beset with spines attached below the scars of the leaves in a ring formation. These spines are flattish at the attachment on the truck, narrowing to a sharp point at its end. The leaves are simple, paripinnate, the stalk brown-scaly and with short and strong prickles at end near the base. The inflorescence is spiny near the base, strongly flattened, the lower lateral

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

axes bearing 2 to 3 spikes, the rests in smaller spikes. The spikes are up to 40 cm long, uppermost covering of spikes, i.e., the spathes are boat-shaped, brown-hairy and densely covered with spines closely lying against each other and flattish. Male flowers are yellowish, the petals free and with 6 stamens. Flowering during June to August. Fruits are oneseeded, soft and rounded, initially green turning black purple when ripe.

Uses: Its distinct, tall, straight, and spiny trunk with light feathery crown makes this an attraction in parks and large gardens like in Singapore. It is too large for small gardens.

Like any other light timber, the trunk is also used for semipermanent construction purposes as house posts and footbridges by local people in areas where this is abundant.

Splits of trunks can be used as floorings, roofing, gutter materials, walls, furniture, and weapons (bows, arrow heads and spear shafts).

Spines however should be removed to avoid being pricked. But they can be used as darts for blowpipes. In other concerns, trunks are used to construct culture pens in mangrove areas in Malaysia. The trunks of this palm is especially long and thin and highly flexible, making it ideal for use in a structure of fishing platforms up to 20 m deep

into the water. Due to its flexibility, it is also used as axe handles, preventing breakage on great impacts. It could be used for charcoal production, as practiced in Malaysia, too. Just a bit of advice to make sure that the palm wood is hard for excellent construction activity: do not cut before the time of flowering; otherwise, it is soft and spongy.

Inflorescence sheaths and woven leaves may be used as containers like baskets, just like other palms. To some extent, woven leaves may be used as decorative roofings during ceremonial rites.

Aside from these different uses of the species, its palm cabbage is edible, both cooked and raw, like salad, which is sometimes mixed with other vegetables and spices. The flowers may be used to flavour rice. Monkeys love eating its flowers, too. Fruit nuts are used in lieu of betel nut. Wine may be produced out of the palm’s sap. Medicinally, the roots are used to treat fever.

Distribution and habitat: It is found in Indo-China, southern Thailand and Malesian region except the Lesser Sunda Islands. It generally grows in upper mangrove fringe and hills, up to 150-m altitude.

Habit of Oncosperma sp (opposite page); trunk with spines of O. horridum (inset)

Photo by J. MacKinnon

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Photo by M. David

Leguminosae: Papilionoideae

Pterocarpus indicus Willd. imparipinnate with early falling small linear to triangular stipules; the leaflets alternate, sometimes sub-opposite and entire. The inflorescences are terminal, racemose or paniculate; bracts and bracteoles small, linear to narrowly triangular.

The flowers are bisexual, irregular, turbinate to campanulate, the corolla bright yellow and at anthesis falling simultaneously forming a mat of yellow petals on the ground. The fruit is an

Common names: BRN: angsana; IDN: sonokembang; MYS: angsana, sena; MMR: panpadauk, pashu-padauk; PHL: narra; SGP: angsana, sena; THA: du ban (northern), pra du king on, pra du ban, pra du lai (central); sa-no (MalayNarathiwat); VNM: giang huong an; ENG: rosewood Description: Angsana or rosewood is a mediumto large-sized, relatively fast-growing and semideciduous tree attaining a height of 40 m. The bole is often massive when old, reaching up to 350 cm in diameter at breast height, usually in poor form by having big double leader branches, which are Flowers (above); habit (opposite page); pods (inset) rather close to the base, with pronounced low plank buttresses and dense wide-spreading drooping dome-shaped indehiscent pod, disc-like or sometimes sickle-shaped, winged crown. The bark outside is greyish brown becoming scaly and with a central, corky seed-bearing portion, this smooth or fissured with age. The leaves are compound, alternate, with prickles and recognized as two forms, i.e., the smooth

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

and the echinate or prickly ones. Seeds 1 to 4 pod.

Uses: Rosewood is a major source of commercial timber in making expensive furniture and furnishing, veneer, interior trim and building materials, novelties, carvings, casing musical instruments (piano, violin, organ pipes) and appliances, flooring, turnery, chairs, chests, desks, dowels, drawer sides, drum sticks, floor lamps, millwork, moldings, sounding board, trimming, woodwork, and a lot more. Its tested durability has made rosewood a common material for structural support for construction.

Other useful parts are the bark, flowers, and leaves. The bark is used medicinally as astringent and industrially for tanning purpose. The flowers and young leaves are edible.

Distribution and habitat: Rosewood is found in southern Myanmar through Southeast Asia towards the Santa Cruz and the Pacific islands. Cultivated in Africa, India, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Okinawa, Hawaii, and Central America. It thrives well on moist sandy loam or clay-loam soil, mainly along tidal creeks and rocky shores, mostly in evergreen forest but also in seasonal forest up to 600m altitude but it may grow at higher altitudes when planted.

Photos by M. David

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osewood trees are noticeably seen along avenues and gardens in Southeast Asia, especially during the flowering season, when buds simultaneously burst lasting only for a day and petals fall like rain resulting to a thick carpet of yellow flowers under every tree.

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Dipterocarpaceae

Shorea Roxb. ex Gaertner f.

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horea species are economically the most important timber trees in the humid Asian tropics (PROSEA 5).

Common names: BRN: meranti merah, obar suluk, seraya, selangan merah, kawang tikus; IDN: meranti merah muda, seraya merah, meranti bunga, meranti merah tua, meranti ketuko; MYS: red seraya (Sabah), lup (Iban, Sarawak), red seraya (Sabah), perawan (Sarawak), Obar suluk (Sabah); MMR: kyilan, myauk-thingan, kadut, kyauk-thingan, u-bankaya, mai-hok-hpi, mai-ngye, lon-mani-ingyin, ang; PHL: red lauan, almon, mayapis, tangile, tiaong; THA: saya, saya-khao, saya, saya-daeng; VNM: sen mu, sen cat, chai; ENG: red meranti Description: This genus, the source of the trade names light and dark red meranti and Philippine Mahogany, are medium to large trees that reach 60 m to 70 m tall and 70 cm to 255 cm in diameter at breast height, with straight gradually tapering cylindrical boles which are without branches up to 10 m to 42 m high. Barks are smooth or variously fissured, flaking in longitudinal flakes or scaling usually from below up, usually thick, greyish brown outside and reddish, pink or orange inside, some species exude brown to reddish resin turning opaque yellow when exposed. The leaves are

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ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

alternate, simple and smooth on the upper surface, lightcolored and sometimes somewhat white powdery on the lower surface. Inflorescences are terminal or axillary panicles, the flowers irregularly crowded, scented, cream to pinkish color. The fruit are a nut borne on short stalks, containing one seed.

Uses: Red meranti is important for its many uses as sources of quality wood, resin, food, material for producing health care and other commercial products.

The wood of red meranti has great advantage for not having siliceous content. It provides for its good workability to come up with various wood works and products. From its wide range of applications, red meranti is particularly important in producing plywood, veneer (face and core), hardboard and particleboard. It is used for light construction works even under exposed conditions but treatment is a requirement for it to last longer.

Light and dark red meranti have basically the same usage, however difference in weight provides for any particular use. Light coloured meranti has lighter weight used ideally for floorings, fittings, panelling, ceiling, shelving, interior partitions, joinery, low-grade decking and boat planking, concrete shuttering, musical instruments (organ pipes), coffin, boxes, toys, turnery and matches.

On the other hand, dark coloured meranti is used for making doors, windows frames, beams, joists, rafters, utility flooring, vehicle bodies, weatherboarding and boat building, among others.

Barks of several species of red meranti produce in large quantities opaque yellow low graded dammar used locally for torches, plasters, varnish and lacquer materials, and as animal and vegetable preservative solution (chloroform). Its trade name is ‘daging’ or ‘dammar batu’. Barks are also used as house panelling walls, stripped into slabs, basket, bins, and in tanning material.

Nuts of red meranti yield fats used in the manufacture of chocolate, cosmetics, soaps, and candles. Fruits are boiled and eaten.

Distribution and habitat: The genus is distributed from Sri Lanka and India through Indo-China towards Malesia, where 163 out of the total 194 species occur. Generally, it grows only in areas with mean annual rainfall not exceeding 1600 mm and with a dry season of less than 6 m, below 1000-m altitude; on deep, well-drained yellow or red soils in the lowland.

Habit of Shorea contorta (opposite page); trunk of Shorea contorta (inset)

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Photos by M. David

Lamiaceae

Tectona grandis L. f.

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Common names: BRN: jati; IDN: jati (general), deleg, kulidawa (Java); LAO: sak (general), mai-sak; MYS: djati; MMR: kyun, mai-sak, mai-sa-lan; PHL: djati (Sulu), dalanang (Panay Bisaya); THA: sak (general), kho-yia-o (Lawa-Chiang Mai), pa-yi (Karen-Kanchanaburi), Pi-hue (Karen-Mae Hong Son), se-ba-yi (Karen-Kamphaeng Phet); VNM: tech, gia ti; ENG: teak Description: Teak is a medium- to large-sized tree that sheds off its leaves at least once a year. It reaches to about 50 m high with irregularly formed crown and with low buttresses. In natural stand, the trunk is generally straight and branchless up to 20 m with up to 250 cm diameter at breast height. Sometimes, small branches sprout on the main trunk. The bark is light brown to grey, the dead outer bark greyish black and drop off in short longitudinal flakes.

The ultimate young twigs are four-angled in cross section.

The leaves are simple oppositely in pairs and alternately at right angles with each pair forming four rows known or

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Photo by J. MacKinnon

ried large crisp leaves that dropped off from teak trees during dry season cover large portions of the ground. These leaves provide good tinder for ground fires and the adult trees survive fire quite well.

Seeds (above); habit (opposite page)

decussate; and some, in three or ternate. The leaf blade is lance-shaped or broadly egg-shaped, big, about 36 cm wide and 54 cm long, the base is wedged-shape, the top abruptly pointed, leathery, the surfaces hairy, rough to the touch on the above surface. The young leaves are purplish. Cluster of flowers are terminal and sometimes axillary. The flowers are bisexual, i.e., both pistil and stamens are in one flower.

The flowers are loosely set in the flower clusters. The fruits are somewhat fleshy when green, enclosed by an inflated calyx, a bit rounded, slightly four-angled, when dry woody.

The seeds are without albumen (nutritive material stored in seed), i.e., endosperm.

Uses: Teak trees are used as ornamental and landscape species. It is amusing to see a robust-looking tree with very

large leaves especially that of the seedlings.

Long ago, the species has been used as plantation species. The great demand of the wood triggered its use in plantations. Mature teak trees are very much sought-after due mainly to its durability and strength for different sorts of indoor and outdoor furniture. These qualities are attributed to its high level of natural oils and low chemical absorption properties – thus, it has high resistance against pests and warping. These properties make teak woods ideal most especially for outdoor use like posts, garden benches, boats, small bridges, roofing and ship decks. Indoor uses of teak wood include as kitchen table, and vat. Teak is also a heavy wood. Freshly cut wild teak sinks in water and it takes a year before it can be rafted down the river to the sawmills. In Myanmar and Thailand, where the species grows naturally, local people for generations have used trained elephants in transporting heavy teak logs, which in a sense, a practise of sustainable form of low impact extraction.

Despite being brittle, teak wood is characterised by excellent workability. This is best used as musical instruments like “sitar”, a popular guitar-like instrument in India. Myanmar has its own historical and cultural account of “thick teak bar” as a “sacred musical instrument of great devotion, unprotected yet unharmed and unmolested, being struck daily by pilgrims and visitors ….”, where the famous Singu Min Bell

Photo by M. David

(formerly “Maha Ghanda” or the Great Bell with mellow sound), hanged when suddenly in 1824, British forces attacked the country. Teak is mentioned in the ballad-like long poem composed by Harold Lucas, which came out in a booklet in 1963, entitled “The Singu Min Bell of Burma” by Harry Aung.

Parts of a teak serve as treating material too. Leaves and bark of roots produce natural dyes which when combined with aluminium, fix the dyes to tissues, cells, and textile.

Recent works of Indians used teak for dyeing. Young leaves, which are really large, serve as wrapper in preparing food.

Boiled leaves extract is used to treat bleeding of larynx, trachea, bronchi, or lungs, and sore throat. Sawdust from teak wood is used as incense in Java. In traditional medicine, a wood powder paste has been used against bilious headaches and swellings; and internally, against dermatitis or as a dewormer. The charred wood soaked in poppy juice and made into a paste is used to relieve the swelling of eyelids.

The bark has been used as an astringent and the wood oil as a hair tonic.

Distribution and habitat: Naturally occurring only in Myanmar, northern Thailand, Lao PDR, and India. It is introduced into Indonesia and other Asian countries. It is also found in the Carribean region, Florida, Virgin Islands and Hawaii, the US, China, and Puerto Rico. It grows in mixed tropical deciduous forests and grows well on limestone soils in areas with a 1000-m altitude. It thrives well in forests often exposed to fire.

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Useful Flowers Useful Flowers and Leaves and Leaves

Oleaceae

Jasminum sambac (L.) Aiton

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t has small, white and sweet-smelling flowers, symbol of cultural and traditional beginnings. It has been adopted as the national flower of the Philippines since 1934. It is also one of Indonesia’s three national flowers; the others are Phalaenopsis amabilis and Rafflesia arnoldii.

Description: Jasmine is a shrub, or sometimes straggling climber or lax when young and rooting at the nodes or ascending, up to 3 meters tall. Its leaves are opposite, simple, ovate, thin; base subcordate to obtuse or cuneate, top obtuse to acuminate, margins partly wavy, smooth or finely hairy on the main veins, with several sunken and bearded vein-axils underneath. Inflorescences are 3-flowered cymes or a many-flowered compact clusters; flowers are single or

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Uses: Flowers are used for garlands and religious ceremonies. Whole plant is popular as an ornamental plant. The leaves are more medicinal than the flowers. A decoction is used internally to treat fever. A poultice of the leaves is applied to treat skin problems and wounds in Malaysia. In

India, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines, the bruised leaves or flowers are applied as a poultice to breast of women as a lactifuge. An infusion of the flowers is applied to the eyelids as a decongestant. In Thailand, the leaves are used as astringent and antiamoebic. The root is given fresh to treat venereal diseases in Malaysia and to treat fever in Indonesia. A tincture made from the root is said to have very strong sedative, anaesthetic, and vulnerary properties.

Roots are used as poultices for sprains and fractures. A decoction of the roots or an infusion of the flowers is used in pulmonary catarrh, bronchitis, and also asthma. The stems are used as an antipyretic and in the treatment of abscesses. The flowers are widely used for their scent and their cooling effect, either directly or in perfumes. In China and Java, flowers are used to flavour jasmine tea. Jasmine tea has calming affect and aphrodisiac qualities. In India, J. sambac is commercially cultivated for its essential oil.

Photos by M. David

Common names: BRN: melur; KHM: molih (Chinese); IDN: melati (general), menu (Javanese); MYS: melor (Peninsular); MMR: mawk-sam-pai; PHL: manul (Bisaya), sampaguita (Tagalog), kampupot (Tagalog, Pampanga); SGP: Arabian jasmine; THA: mali, mali la, mali son (general), khao-taek (Shan-Mae Hong Son), tia-mun (Lawa-Chiang Mai), mali khi kai (Chiang Mai), mali pom (northern), mali luang (Mae Hong Son); VNM: lai, nhai; ENG: Arabian jasmine

double layered petals (in cultivated varieties), 5 or more lobes, mostly white, very fragrant. The fruit is a black berry, surrounded by the accrescent, increasing in size with age, calyx. It can easily be propagated using stem cuttings and leaf cuttings.

Flower buds (above); habit (opposite page)

Distribution and habitat: J. sambac probably originated in India and was brought to Malaysia and Java around the Third Century; since then widely cultivated throughout the Malesian region for its heavily scented flowers. J. sambac is widely planted and occurring from the sea level up to 800-m altitude.

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Arecaceae

Johannesteijsmannia magnifica J. Dransfield

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he endemism of the species only to Southeast Asia is something to be proud of, particularly by the Malaysians, coupled with its distinct gigantic diamond-shaped leaves.

Uses: The leaves are collected mainly for thatching purpose, with its large, durable, strong and rain proof qualities. The aborigines at the Sungai Lalang Forest Reserve area (Peninsular Malaysia) roof and wall their houses with the huge leaves (Dransfield, 1972). The plants are used ornamentally in shaded areas in the tropics, in open air, (not airconditioned environments) or greenhouses in temperate zones.

Description: As the specific epithet implies, this palm is indeed magnificent enough having large almost triangularlyshaped leaf blades, dark-green above and whitish beneath with equally long slender stalks arising from a rhizome underground. This palm is without a visible trunk since the leaves arise directly above the ground. The leaves are erect, large with long stalks, dark green above and whitish beneath. The leaf blades are inverted trowel-shaped although sometimes the margins at the top portion are curved. The expanded pleated leaf-blades measure 173 cm to 315 cm long by 85 cm to 148 cm broad. The lower margins of the leaf-blade and the leaf stalk are armed with short spines. The leaf bases are beset with long fibres, which wither and fall off into a network of brown coloured

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Photo by A. Baja-Lapis

Common names: MYS: daun payung, pokok payung, daun sal, sal, koh, pokok koh, pokok sang (Peninsular); belawan, sang, siemienjak boewah maseh, sieboesoen boewah masah (Sumatra); daun ekor buaya, sumuruk (Borneo); ENG: silver Joey, silver Joey palm, kite palm

Habit (above); leaves (opposite page)

heap. Inflorescences are axillary, arching out of a pile of dead leaves and other plant debris which accumulate at the base of the plant. The flowers are small, white, smooth, solitary or in groups of 2, 3 or 4. The fruits are small, rounded, and covered by reddish brown corky warts. The seeds are with bony endosperm.

Distribution and habitat: J. magnifica is endemic in Peninsular Malaysia. It occurs in a few hills in northeastern Negeri Sembilan, patchily in Ulu Semenyih (Selangor) and further up to Kinta Hills (Perak). It is usually found on steep slopes, along the banks of small rivers and sometimes on the ridge tops. The species is found at elevations from 198 m (Sungai Lalang Forest Reserve, Selangor, Peninsular Malaysia) to 564 m (Serendah Forest Reserve, Selangor, Peninsular Malaysia). It survives well on the welldrained soil and under deep shade but is intolerant of disturbed forests and open spaces (Dransfield, 1972).

Another species (J. latifrons) of the genus Johannesteijsmannia, is found in southern Thailand, Sumatra, and western Borneo. Another two species (J. lanceolata and J. perakensis) are also endemic in Malay Peninsula.

Photo by J. MacKinnon

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Arecaceae

Livistona rotundifolia (Lamk) Martius

Common names: BRN: serdang; IDN: woka, serdang; MYS: serdang; MMR: taung-htan; PHL: anahaw; SGP: footstool palm; THA: pam chawa, pam tan, pam yawa (Bangkok); ENG: fan palm; footstool palm Description: This is a medium-sized solitary palm attaining 7m to 15 m tall with a slim trunk with a diameter of 20 cm, woody on the outside, more densely woody near the base and soft at the core. The bark smooth with distinct but slightly raised leaf scars. The leaves are fan-shaped, shiny when young with the leaflets folded and attached along the margins and parted at the top when old and long spiny at the margins of the stalks near the base. Mature leaves are deeply divided and drooping making the shape of the crown oblong or rounded. The leaf sheaths are quite shallow at the base clasping partly the stem with brownish over-crossing fibres. Flowers are small, alone or clustered with short tube and long-lobed petals. Fruits are small, up to 2 cm in diameter, rounded even when young, brightly coloured brick red when

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ripe, turning black when dry. Seed is hard and only 1 per fruit.

Uses: Since its discovery, Southeast Asians have found a variety of uses of this palm.

Its straight trunks are used as posts for temporary dwellings. These posts can last when erected on dry foundation by placing rocks beneath them. Trunks are also used as floorings by using their hard outer strips. Fan-shaped

leaves are used for thatching houses usually in the form of sewn shingles. Sewn leaves were also used as sails in earlier times.

Presently, leaves are sewn to make raingear or a sun hat frame with a bamboo. Yet, one of its popular uses is as a light but durable leaf-woven fan. This fan comes about during dry season plied along the roads in the countryside or in novelty shops in the city. Immature leaves are pliable and ideally used as food wrappers.

Its wood is also used as bows, spear shafts, and walking sticks or canes. Children and birds love eating the fruits which are brightly coloured. Its palm cabbage, chunky and quintessentially sweet is edible, usually eaten raw or cooked. Popularly, this palm cabbage is finely chopped and made into fresh or fried spring rolls which are prevalent in Asian cuisine. However, whenever the palm cabbage is harvested the plant eventually dies, making it even more a costly gourmet food.

Photos by M. David

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e often see this palm as an ornamental in small pots and gardens with its noticeable spines at the margins of its petioles and fanshaped leaves when still young, and in maturity, these leaves serve as shades in big gardens.

Leaf (above); habit (opposite page); fan (inset)

Distribution and habitat: Native to Borneo, Philippines, Sulawesi, and the Moluccas. It is a widely cultivated palm, found abundantly in other Southeast Asian countries. It thrives well in lowland forests.

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Arecaceae

Nypa fruticans Wurmb

Common names: BRN: apong, nipah (Brunei Malay), apong, nipah (Brunei Malay); KHM: nypa; IDN: nypa; MYS: nypa; MMR: dani; PHL: nipa; SGP: atap palm; THL: chak (general), at-ta (Malay-Peninsular); VNM: dua la, dua muoc; ENG: mangrove palm, nypa Description: Nypa is a palm growing in clusters, often forming large colonies and without visible stems above the ground. The underground stem called rhizome lies horizontally underneath the ground and reach to about half a meter long.

At the end of the growing rhizome a new plant arise which add to the cluster in the colony. The leaves called fronds are erect. Large feather-like in appearance, sometimes reaching more than 7 m long with the mature ones usually leaning away from the centre of the growing plant. The separate division of the leaf (called leaflets) are several times longer than wide (linear) arising from the upper opposite sides of the frond (rachis). The leaflets are progressively becoming shorter towards the stalk and the top of the frond. The arrangement of the flowers in the floral axis (inflorescence) has erect and stout stalk with a large orange coloured sheath (called

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germinate naturally while floating on the water in the swamps establish themselves in the mud flats and along muddy banks.

spathe), which is olive green at the top. The stalk ends with a cluster of female flowers which are enclosed by gold coloured leaf-like structure (called bracts), and the sides with clubshaped unstalked spikes of male flowers. Both male and female flowers are yellow, the males in thick spikes and the females with large head. The fruits are on a thick stalk with more or less the size of a golf ball. The fruits in cluster are more or less the size of a man’s head, supported by a thick stalk, dark brown colour when fresh. Individual one-seeded woody fruit breaks when ripe. The seeds which usually

Photo by M. David

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outheast Asians find the species valuable because of its many traditional and modern uses.

Leaflets

Uses: Dried leaves are very durable and last long enough to be woven tightly for thatching and roofing purposes in the form of shingles (‘pawid’ or ‘atap’) and woven mats, baskets and other household items. Occasionally, leaves are used as decorations during festivities and are also used to make raingears, sun hats, wrappers to cook rice or gelatinous rice, called ‘suman’ to Filipinos. Young leaves are preferred locally as papers in making cigarettes because it gives strong and sharp taste. To prepare commercial cigarette papers, young leaves are trimmed leaving only the mature leaves for other purposes. The outer skin of young leaves are stripped off and cut to desired size for packing and local selling.

Young inflorescence is tapped to collect sweet sap before it blooms. The process involves beating and binding of young inflorescences to yield sugary liquid. The exudate is used to make toddy and vinegar or boiled down to produce sugar. In Indonesia, the sap is used to feed pigs especially during lean times. Fermented sap may also produce a local liquor called ‘tuba’. Before the last World War, Malaysia dealt with the manufacture of alcohol out of nipah palms, which was used as fuel for vehicles.

Photos by M. David

Fruits in cluster

Habit

The other parts of the nipah palm have other uses as well. The petals of the flowers are used as an aromatic tea.

Young shoots are edible as vegetable. Dried petioles, in abundant quantity as it burn fast, may serve as fuel.

Immature fruits are used as common ingredients in desserts.

Young seeds are edible with taste similar to coconut. The fleshy part of the nut is edible. Before the plastic buttons, the

woody part of the fruit was cut into buttons.

Distribution and habitat: The plant is found from Sri Lanka, and India through Southeast Asia and northern Australia to Solomons, Caroline Islands, and Ryukyu Islands.

It can be found growing in brackish water at the mouths of major rivers and areas of low salinities and calm waters.

Inflorescence

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Pandanaceae

Pandanus amaryllifolius Roxb.

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t is the only scented species of Pandanus, which is very popular as a flavouring material to Asians used in any food preparation, particularly in cooking rice, desserts, and beverages.

Uses: Fresh young leaves may be cut from a 6-month old pandan and thereafter, leaving a few leaves at the top of the plant. The frequency of harvesting of leaves affects its growth to larger form. Leaves are used in different culinary preparations. Juice extracts from fresh leaves are well-loved flavouring by Asians used in preparing cakes, desserts, and sweetened flavour meats. It is used as substitute to vanilla and gives the natural green food colouring as well. Boiled water with fresh leaves serves as a good drinking refresher.

There are two most commonly known ways of cooking rice.

Rice is cooked with a 2 to 3 fresh leaves. Once the pot is opened, the aromatic smell comes out from it. Another way is cooking rice in pouches of these woven leaves . The leaves are woven to produce different handicrafts such as floor mats, table mat, beddings, baskets, walls, decours, ropes, local fans, hats, thatch, and sails.

Used as an ornamental plant.

Description: This fragrant pandan grows as a small usually unbranched tree, reaching to 1 m to 1.6 m tall, slightly leaning or with erect stem. Leaves are green, shiny on the upper surface, long and narrow to sword-like with pointed tips and distinct twin lateral pleats. There is a presence of minute prickles, less than 1 mm long near the apex and at the base.

Flowers and fruits are very rarely observed on this plant but the presence of aerial roots is a distinct feature. It is propagated by suckers or detached offsets or stem cutting.

Suckers are directly planted in a sandy medium. Stem cuttings are inserted obliquely in the medium.

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Photos by M. David

Common names: BRN: pandan wangi (Brunei Malay); KHM: ta¸y; IDN: pandan wangi (general), pandan rampe (Sundanese), pondak (moluccas); LAO: t¸:y ho:m, t¸:y ba:nz; MYS: pandan wangi; MMR: sat-thapoo, sat-thwa-pu, kunhmwe; PHL: pandan, pandan banguhan, pandan mabango; SGP: pandan wangi; THA: toei hom (Bangkok), pa-nae-wonging (Malay-Narathiwat); VNM: dua thom; ENG: fragrant pandan, fragrant screw pine

Habit (above); leaves in whorl arrangement (opposite page)

Distribution and habitat: An ancient cultigen which has never been found in the wild. Widespread in Asian countries: i.e., Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Borneo, the Philippines, and Myanmar (Burma). Also in Africa, Polynesia, Ryukyu Islands, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, northern Australia, and India. Continuous wet condition of the area is unfavourable to grow large plants.

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Poaceae

Thysanolaena latifolia (Roxb. ex Hornem.) Honda

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culms, and rhizomes. New stems can grow from clump coppices, approximately within 3 years. It can be propagated by rhizomes, rooted culms or seeds.

Common names: IDN: awis (Sundanese); menjalin wuwu (Javanese), lantebung (Makasar); LAO: kh’èèm kh’ôông; yaa yung; MYS: buloh teberau, rumput buloh; PHL: tambu (Tagalog), gatbo (Bikol), buybuy (Ilokano); THA: bong kha ching (Phu noy), tong kong, lao laeng (northern), yaa yung (southern), yaa mai kuat; VNM: dot, dong trung hoa tha’o; ENG: broom grass, tiger grass

Uses: The whole plant, excluding the leaves, are used to make brooms, particularly the stem and inflorescence. In spite of the availability of brooms from synthetic materials, Southeast Asians prefer to use grass brooms. Grass broom’s soft spikelets can collect fine dust when used to sweep the floor.

Description: This is a tall perennial robust grass with erect or slightly spreading solid bamboo-like culms and about 3 m to 5 m high.

The leaf sheaths are hairy or smooth, with elongated and pointed tip leaves and rounded base. The terminal inflorescences are drooping, panicles up to 50 m to 60 m long, peduncle rounded, up to 100 cm to140 cm, 0.5 cm to 1 cm in diameter. Flowering throughout the year at lower altitude. Fruits are achenes, ovate, dark reddish brown; seeds small brown. Fruits mature in January to February.

It naturally regenerates by seed, rooted

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Full and no trace of broken flowers in inflorescence with no indication of insect attack too is preferred in making brooms. Inflorescence should be cleaned from seeds, sun-dried, and stored for years before making it a broom. A kilo of tiger grass can produce two brooms.

Quality of brooms depends on the choice of inflorescence and the skill of the broom-maker, who can make 5-10 brooms a day.

Other uses include the palatability of young shoots of tiger grass. Leaves are livestock’s roughage, which can be harvested and carried to the barn. Dried bamboo-like culm and inflorescence of tiger grass are used as indoor decoration in some Asian homes. The inflorescence is dipped into different colours and sun-dried to have coloutful fillers for bouquets and other flower arrangement composition..

Photos by M. David

outheast Asian households prefer using natural and cheap grass broom to clean their dwellings.

Inflorescence (above); leaves (opposite page); broom (inset)

ASEAN’S 100 MOST PRECIOUS PLANTS

Distribution and habitat: It occurs from India to Indo-China and China and throughout Malesia. It grows from 150-m to 2000-m altitude in valleys and on light shaded slopes, in ravines, and along riverbanks. It is found associated with trees or bamboo, solitary or in small groups.

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Glossary acuminate Tapered to a slender point, especially referring to leaves. adventitious root A root that rises from any plant part other than the primary root (radicle) or its branches. air layering A method of vegetative propagation, usually of a wounded part, in which the branch or a shoot is enclosed in a moist medium until roots develop, and then it is severed and cultivated as an independent plant. anthelmintic Destructive to worms: a drug or agent that destroys worm. apiculate Ending abruptly in a short, sharp point. aphrodisiac Stimulating sexual desire. axillary Placed or growing in the axis of a branch or leaf. bifid Divided into two equal parts by a median cleft. bilousness A symptom complex with nausea, abdominal discomfort, headache and constipation, formerly attributed to excessive secretion of bile. bract A modified leaf associated with plant reproductive structures. bracteole A small bract, especially if on the floral axis. calyx The outermost whorl of a flower, composed of sepals. campanulate Bell-shaped; applied particularly to the corolla. capitate Forming a head, as certain flowers of the Compositae. cirrus Any hairlike tuft. corolla Collectively, the petals of a flower. cuneate Wedge-shaped with the acute angle near the base. cyme An inflorescence in which each main axis terminates in a single flower; secondary and tertiary axes may also have flowers but with shorter flower stalks. cymose Of, pertaining to, or resembling a cyme. decoction A medicinal preparation or other substance made by boiling, especially in water.

decussate Of the arrangement of leaves, occurring in alternating pairs at right angles. dehiscent Becoming open at maturity to release seeds, as certain fruits. demulcent Allaying the irritation of abraded or inflamed body surfaces, soothing, mucilaginous or oily medicine or application. dentate Having toothlike or conical marginal projections. dioecious Having male and female reproductive organs on different individuals. diuretic Tending to increase the flow of urine; an agent that promotes the excretion of urine. dropsy Oedema. drupe A fruit, such as a cherry, having a thin or leathery exocarp, a fleshy mesocarp, and a single seed with a stony endocarp. dyspepsia A condition of disturbed digestion. dysentery Any of various diseases characterised by inflammation of the intestines, abdominal pain and frequent bloody, mucous faeces. echinate Having a dense covering of spines or bristles. elemi A soft resin obtained from the tropical trees of the family Burseraceae in the Philippines; used as a plasticizer, in cements and printing inks, and for perfumery and water proofing. elliptic Oval-shaped. epigeal Having one or more cotyledons above the ground. explant An excised fragment of a tissue or an organ used to start a cell culture. exstipulate Without stipules. exudate A proteinaceous material that passes through blood vessel walls into the surrounding tissue in inflammation or a superficial lesion. flagella Relatively long, whiplike, centriole-based locomotor organelles on some motile cells. floriferous Blooming freely, used principally pf ornamental plants. glabrous Having a smooth surface; specifically, having the epidermis devoid of hair or down.

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gripe Gastric or intestinal pain. gonorrhoea a venereal disease characterised by inflammation of the mucous membrane of the genitourinary tract and a discharge of mucus and pus. haemoptysis Expectoration of blood or blood-sputum from some part of the respiratory tract. imparipinnate Also known as odd-pinnate- off the compound leaf, having a single leaflet at the tips of the petiole with leaflets on both sides of the petiole. inflorescence A flower cluster segregated from any other flowers on the same plant, together with the stems and bracts (reduced leaves) associated with it. infructescence An inflorescence’s fruiting stage. jaundice A syndrome marked by hyperbilirubinaemia and deposition of bile pigments in the skin, mucous membranes and eyeball, resulting in yellowish pigmentation of these body parts. labellum A central petal at the base of an orchid flower, usually large and unlike the others. lanceolate Shaped like the head of a lance. laxative An agent that promotes evacuation of the bowel; mildly purgative. lenticular Having the shape of a lentil or double convex lens. menorrhagia Excessive uterine bleeding at regular intervals, with the period of flow being of usual duration; also called hypermenorrhoea. mesocarp The middle layer of the pericarp. ocrea A tubular stipule or pair of coherent stipules. oedema The presence of abnormally large amounts of fluid in the intercellular tissue spaces of the body. oxalate Salt of oxalic acid. oxalic acid Poisonous, transparent, colourless crystals melting at 187°C panicles A branched or compound raceme in which the secondary branches are often racemose as well.

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pericarp The wall of a fruit, developed by ripening and modification of the ovarian wall. pinnate Having parts arranged like a feather, branching from a central axis. pubescent Covered with soft short hairs. purgative An agent causing evacuation of the bowels, especially through stimulating peristaltic action racemes An inflorescence on which flowers are borne on stalks of equal length on an unbranched main stalk that continues to grow during flowering. racemose Bearing, or occurring in the form of, a raceme. rachis An axial structure such as the axis of an inflorescence, the central petiole of a compound leaf. reticulate Having or resembling a network of fibres, veins, or lines. retuse Having a rounded apex with a slight, central notch. rhizome An underground horizontal stem, often thickened and tuber-shaped, and possessing buds, nodes, and scalelike leaves. sedative Allaying activity and excitement. sepals One of the leaves composing the calyx. spadix A fleshy spike that is enclosed in a leaflike spathe and is the characteristic inflorescence of palms and arums. spathe A large, usually coloured bract or pair of bracts enclosing an inflorescence, especially a spadix, on the same axis. spermatorrhoea Involuntary, abnormally frequent, and excessive emission of semen without copulation. stellate Of leaves, surrounding the stem in a whorl. sudorific Causing or promoting the flow of sweat. tepals A segment of a perianth, applied when no distinction between sepals and petals can be made. turbinate Top-shaped.

Index to Scientific Names Adenanthera, p 176 Agathis, p 178 Alstonia scholaris, p 180 Amorphophallus titanium, p 158 Amomum villosum, p 92 Amorphophallus paeoniifolius, p 2 Antiaris toxicaria, p 122 Areca cathecu, p 74 Arenga pinnata, p 4 Aristolochia tagala, p 124 Artocarpus heterophyllus, p 38 Aquilaria malaccensis, p 134 Averrhoa bilimbi, p 40 Azadirachta indica, p 126 Azolla pinnata, p 159 Bambusa vulgaris, p 30 Bauhinia, p 76 Borassus flabellifer, p 6 Calamus, p 32 Calophyllum inophyllum, p 94 Cananga odorata, p 136 Canarium, p 8 Caryota, p 10 Cassia, p 78 Centella asiatica, p 96

Cinnamomum camphora, p 38 Cinnamomum, p 164 Citrus maxima, p 42 Coccinia grandis, p 98 Cocos nucifera, p 44 Cymbopogon citratus, p 140 Cyrtostachys renda, p 80 Dendrocalamus giganteus, p 12 Derris elliptica, p 128 Dillenia indica, p 100 Dioscorea hispida, p 102 Diospyros blancoi, p 46 Diplazium esculentum, p 14 Dipterocarpus, p 182 Dracaena cambodiana, p 104 Dyera costulata, p 142 Durio, p 48 Eucalyptus deglupta, p 184 Eurycoma longifolia, p 106 Eusideroxylon zwageri, p 186 Ficus elastica, p 144 Fokienia hodginsii, p 146 Garcinia mangostana, p 50 Gnetum gnemon, p 16 Gonostylus bancanus, p 188

Hopea, p 148 Intsia, p 190 Ipomea aquatica, p 18 Ixora, p 82 Jasminum sambac, p 202 Johannesteijsmannia magnifica, p 204 Kaempferia galanga, p 166 Lansium domesticum, p 52 Litchi chinensis, p 54 Livistona rotundifolia, p 206 Mangifera indica, p 56 Medinilla magnifica, p 84 Melaleuca cajuputi, p 150 Metroxylon sago, p 20 Momordica charantia, p 108 Morinda citrifolia, p 110 Morus alba, p 112 Musa, p 58 Myristica fragrans, p 168 Nelumbo nucifera, p 22 Nepenthes rajah, p 161 Nephelium lappaceum, p 60 Nypa fruticans, p 208 Oncosperma tigillarium, p 192 Oryza sativa, p 70

Pandanus amaryllifolius, p 210 Paphiopedilum, p 86 Phalaenopsis, p 87 Pinus merkussii, p 152 Piper nigrum, p 170 Pterocarpus indicus, p 194 Rafflesia, p 162 Rauvolfia serpentina, p 114 Rhizophora, p 34 Salacca zalacca, p 62 Sandoricum koetjape, p 64 Santalum album, p 154 Shorea, p 196 Solanum melongena, p 24 Strongylodon macrobotrys, p 88 Strychnos nux-vomica, p 130 Styrax tonkinensis, p 156 Syzygium aromaticum, p 172 Syzygium jambos, p 66 Tamarindus indicus, p 26 Tectona grandis, p 198 Thysanolaena latifolia, p 212 Trichosanthes kirilowii, p 116 Vanda Jones, p 89 Vitex negundo, p 118

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The Asia Rice Foundation Rice for Life Website: Making paper from rice straw website: www.riceweb.org/Paper.htm The International Rubber Research and Development Board. IRRDB.Net Website: http://www.irrdb.net/IRRDB/ NaturalRubber/ Queensland Government. Environmental Protection Agency, Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service. http:// www.env.qld.gov.au Rain Tree Nutrition. Tropical Plant Database File for Bitter Melong (Momordica charantia) http://www.rain-tree.com/ bitmelon.htm Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/ Russell, A.B. et al. 1997. Poisonous plants of North Carolina-Momordica charantia. North Carolina Cooperative Extension Web: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/poison/Momorch.htm Sand Mountain Herbs Chinese Cucumber Trichosanthes kirilowii http://www.sandmountainherbs.com/ cucumber_chinese.html Sandoricum koetjape (Burm. F.) Nakai. California Department of Food and Agriculture Web: http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/ phpps/pe/page24.htm Sauerborn, J. undated. Salak (Salacca zalacca (Gaertn.) Voss: A minor fruit with increasing commercial importance. Acta Horticulturae Homepage: http://www.actahort.org/books/531/531_44.htm Schmidt, R.J. Dioscoreaceae (Yam Family) http://bodd.cf.ac.uk/BotDermFolder/BotDermD/DIOS.html Shepperd-Hanger, S. This Is An Overview of Aromatheraphy. Aromatheraphy Information Web: http:// www.craftassoc.com/aromathy.html Simply green. http://www.simplygreen.com.sg/text/rafflesia.htm Solar Fruit History of Mango http://www.solarfruit.com/fruit.htm Source for Chinese and Alternative Medicine. http://www.healthphone.com Technology Transfer Fact Sheet, Center for Wood Anatomy Research. http://www2.fpl.fs.fed.us/TechSheets Trade Winds Tropical Fruit Database. http://www.tradewindsfruit.com Tropilab Inc. Botanicals and Tropical Seeds. 2000-2004 http://www.tropilab.com Your resource for tropical forestry and agroforestry Web: http://www.agroforester.com University of Connecticut. Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Conservatory http://florawww.eeb.uconn.edu/ V. Chandrasekaran. Department to root out ‘Tongkat Ali’ Pilferage. 2001. Sumatara Pasak Bumi, Indonesia http:// www.pasakbumi.com/protected_plant.htm Whatcom Seed Company. http://seedrack.com/03.html World Agroforestry Centre. International Centre for Research in Agroforestry http://www.worldagroforestrycentre.org 2002. The Nation. Rice article: Thailand. In: Asia Rice The Asia Rice Foundation-Rice for life Web. http:// www.asiarice.org/sections/whatsnew/Thailand48.html

About the Authors Aida Baja-Lapis. At the core of her extensive field experience in environment and natural resources (ENR) research and development (R and D), Dr. Baja-Lapis returns to her fundamental undertaking as a preeminent botanist-taxonomist in coming up with the book on the ASEAN Region’s precious plants. This undertaking, pursued collaboratively, highlights the embracing importance of the plants accounted in this book in the cultural, social, economic, health, and ecologic matrices of the more than 500 million people in the ASEAN Region. As deeply involved in the study of plants, she shares in this book the far reaching implications of the plant genetic resources ASEAN harbors on the well-being of its people before the growing threat of forest destruction and environmental degradation. Having served the Philippines’ Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau, Dr. Baja-Lapis draws upon her field-tested expertise in plant collection, herbarium techniques, and seed production in providing the critical direction in shaping this book. She is the Chief of the ARCBC’s Research and Development Branch. She holds a doctorate degree in forest biological sciences obtained from the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB).

Myra Escalante-David. Ms David holds a graduate degree in forestry and environmental science from UPLB. Her keen appreciation of the forest ecosystem provides a clear perspective on the vital roles of plants to human and community life. Seen not only as natural resources, she delved into the cultural, religious, and medicinal niches of the Region to derive a deeper understanding not only the uses of the plants but their transcendental role in the history of traditions and practices. Having worked with communities, Ms David brings into this book a keen insight of the enduring importance of these plants in the context for which human and community lives have been founded and promoted. Ms David undertakes an active role in the overall management of ARCBC’s R and D projects across the Region.

Clarinda G. Reyes. At the outset in establishing ARCBC, Ms Reyes has been involved in managing the ASEAN-wide R and D activities of ARCBC which has brought her at close range in looking into the various facets of conservation efforts. By and large, her undertaking is a wellspring for taking stock important plant species that have evolved as vital natural heritage among ASEAN people.

Ms Reyes, a graduate degree holder in environmental management with biology as her undergraduate course both from UPLB, situates her collaboration in coming up with this book on a firmer ground. And having been extensively trained in using various ENR management tools, she brings to the book fresh outlook on diverse and complex bioecological systems from which the ASEAN’s most precious plants have evolved.

Bernadette N. Servaz-Audije. Ms Servaz-Audije accounts long professional undertaking in ecological profiling and has evolved with a keen understanding of the phonological characteristics of plants under differing climatic conditions.

Chiefly, she has a wide exposure in field-based researches on various plants particularly in the mangrove areas. Having joined ARCBC, she has broadened her insights on the conservation efforts of the centre to bring about her collaborative effort in taking stock ASEAN’s important living heritage from the plant kingdom. Ms Servaz-Audije has graduate courses in plant pathology and an undergraduate in zoology from UPLB. Her involvement with ERDB has equipped her with analytical skills in looking into the plant characteristics and how they play their roles in the socioecologic setting of tropical communitities.

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Hundreds of precious plants found in Southeast Asia are lined up. Others are already documented but a big percentage requires documentation.

Photo of Cynometra ramiflora by M. David