Calophyllum inophyllum

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Calophyllum inophyllum

Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Malpighiales
Family: Calophyllaceae
Genus: Calophyllum
Species:
C. inophyllum
Binomial name
Calophyllum inophyllum
Synonyms[3]
List
    • Balsamaria inophyllum Lour.
    • Calophyllum apetalum Blanco
    • Calophyllum bintagor Roxb.
    • Calophyllum blumei Wight
    • Calophyllum ovatifolium Noronha
    • Calophyllum wakamatsui Kaneh.

Calophyllum inophyllum is a large

outrigger ships, it has been spread in prehistoric times by the migrations of the Austronesian peoples to the islands of Oceania and Madagascar, along with other members of the genus Calophyllum. It has since been naturalized in regions in the East African coast.[4] It is also a source of the culturally important tamanu oil
.

Names

Calophyllum inophyllum is also known as Alexandrian laurel

Island Southeast Asia and Oceania, they are also commonly known as bintangur, bitaog, tamanu, or kamani.[7] In India it is known as Polanga (ପୋଲାଙ୍ଗ) in Odia, Punnag (पुन्नाग) in Marathi and Punnai in Tamil languages. In Kiswahili it is known as Mtondoo.[8] [9]

Description

Leaves

Tree and leaves

Calophyllum inophyllum is a low-branching and slow-growing tree, it spreads with a broad and irregular crown. It usually reaches 8 to 30 m (26 to 98 ft) in height.[10] Its trunk is thick and covered with black and cracked bark.[11]

Flowers

Flowering can occur perennially, but usually two distinct flowering periods are observed twice a year, in late spring from April to June and in late autumn from October to December.[10] The flower is 25 to 30 mm (0.98 to 1.18 in) wide and occurs in racemose or paniculate inflorescences consisting of four to 15 flowers. It has a sweet fragrance which attracts many insects to pollinate it.[10]

Fruit

The fruit (the ballnut) is a round, green drupe measuring 2 to 4 cm (0.79 to 1.57 in) in diameter. When ripe, the fruit is wrinkled and its color varies from yellow to brownish-red. It has thin spongy flesh with a taste slightly like apple.[10][11]

Distribution and habitat

Calophyllum inophyllum is native to Africa in: Comoros; Kenya; Madagascar; Mauritius; Mozambique; Seychelles; Tanzania (including Pemba Island of the Zanzibar Archipelago); south, southeast and east Asia in: Bangladesh;[12][13] Cambodia; China (on Hainan); southern India; Andaman and Nicobar Islands Indonesia; Japan (Ryukyu Islands)(Bonin Islands); Malaysia; Maldives; Myanmar; Papua New Guinea; the Philippines; Sri Lanka; Taiwan; Thailand; Vietnam; the northwestern, southwestern and south central Pacific Region in: the Cook Islands; Fiji; French Polynesia (Marquesas and Society Islands); Guam; the Marshall Islands; Micronesia; the Northern Mariana Islands; Palau; and Samoa; and in Australia in: Northern Territory and Queensland.[2]

Heritage tree, Penaga Laut (Calophyllum inophyllum) at Singapore Botanic Gardens

Now, it is widely cultivated in all

tropical regions of the world.[2] Because of its decorative leaves, fragrant flowers, and spreading crown, it is best known as an ornamental plant.[2]

This tree often grows in

lowland forests. However, it has also been cultivated successfully in inland areas at moderate altitudes. It tolerates varied kinds of soil, coastal sand, clay, or even degraded soil.[citation needed
]

Uses

Shipbuilding

Mastwood is notable for its ability to grow to massive sizes in sandy or rocky beaches of island and coastal habitats, as well as its habit of sending out arching large trunks over the water where its seeds are dispersed via the currents.

outrigger ships and were carried with them as they migrated to Oceania and Madagascar. Other species of the genus Calophyllum were also used similarly, like Calophyllum soulattri, Calophyllum peekelii, and Calophyllum goniocarpum. They were comparable in importance to how oaks were in European shipbuilding and timber industries.[4]

Various parts of the mastwood were integral to the manufacture of

masts, outrigger floats, and outrigger spars. Smaller curving limbs can also be carved into the ribs of the boat.[4]

In many parts of Polynesia, mastwood groves planted in

In

Queensland Assembly, a clause was specially inserted to protect trees of this species at Thursday Island. A fine of £10 is inflicted on any person who cuts down or injures this or a cocoa-nut tree, or any other tree bearing edible fruit. This clause is, of course, in the interest of the aboriginals.".[17]

Other uses

Aside from shipbuilding,

fish poison.[14] The sap of the tree is poisonous and is used to make poison arrows in Samoa.[18]
The mature fruit is poisonous enough to use as rat bait.

The

neoflavone isolated from natural sources (1951) was calophyllolide from C. inophyllum seeds.[20]

The Mavilan, a Tulu-speaking tribe in north Kerala in India, use the bark to make a powder that they mix with water and apply to plants affected by a type of plant disease caused by water that they call neeru vembu.[21]

The

C. inophyllum seed oil meets the major biodiesel requirements in the United States (ASTM D 6751), and European Union (EN
14214). The average oil yield is 11.7 kg-oil/tree or 4680 kg-oil/hectare. In the northwest coastal areas of Luzon island in Philippines, the oil was used for night lamps. This widespread use started to decline when kerosene became available, and later on electricity. It was also used as fuel to generate electricity to provide power for radios during World War II.

See also

References

  1. . Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n  Calophyllum inophyllum was first described and published in Species Plantarum 1:513. 1753. "Calophyllum inophyllum". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 26 April 2012.
  3. ^ "Calophyllum inophyllum L." Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  4. ^ .
  5. .
  6. ^ Kathirithamby-Wells, J. (2005). Nature and nation: Forests and Development in Peninsular Malaysia. University of Hawaii Press. p. xvi,34.
  7. S2CID 146739541
    .
  8. ^ https://en.bab.la/dictionary/swahili-english/mtondoo
  9. ^ http://swahiliproverbs.afrst.illinois.edu/experience.html cf 1861
  10. ^ a b c d Tan, Ria (January 2013). "Penaga laut". Wild Singapore. Retrieved 16 September 2022.
  11. ^
    S2CID 21847865. Archived from the original
    (PDF) on 2019-01-19. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  12. National Parks Singapore
    . Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  13. ^ "সুলতান চাঁপার নানা গুণ". www.prothom-alo.com. Archived from the original on 2017-09-07.
  14. ^ a b c Orwa, C.; Mutua, A.; Kindt, R.; Anthony, S. (2009). "Calophyllum inophyllum". Agroforestree Database:a tree reference and selection guide version 4.0 (PDF). World Agroforestry.
  15. .
  16. ^ Allen, James A. (2002). "Calophyllum inophyllum". In Vozzo, J.A. (ed.). Tropical Tree Seed Manual (PDF). Agriculture Handbook. Vol. 721. US Department of Agriculture Forest Service. pp. 357–359.
  17. ^ J. H. Maiden (1889). The useful native plants of Australia : Including Tasmania. Turner and Henderson, Sydney.
  18. ^ Alexandrian Laurel, Kamani. "Landscape Plants of America" (online ed.). plantbooks.com.
  19. ^ Georges M. Halpern (2002). The Healing Trail: Essential Oils of Madagascar (illustrated ed.). Basic Health Publications, Inc.
  20. S2CID 38062976
    .
  21. ^ Suresh, K. P. (2010). Indigenous Agricultural Practices among Mavilan Tribe in North Kerala.

External links