3839

5(1): Timber trees; Major commercial timbers

Shorea glauca King

This article should be read together with the article on the genus: Shorea (balau and red balau) in the Handbook volume indicated above in this database.

Journ. As. Soc. Beng. 62(2): 117 (1893).

Indonesia: balau bunga, rasak pai, semantok lungkik (western Sumatra). Malaysia: balag tiong, damar laut daun besar, selimbar (Peninsular). Thailand: ek, ku-be (peninsular).

Peninsular Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia and western Sumatra.

The timber is used as balau. Old specimens exude a dammar which is purer than that of many other Shorea species.

A medium-sized to large tree up to 50 m tall with cylindrical bole branchless for 18—27 m and 120—160(—250) cm in diameter and with prominent buttresses; leaves ovate to lanceolate, 6—15 cm 2.3—9 cm, thin, with 7—10 pairs of secondary veins hardly raised beneath, lower surface glaucous; petals short, elliptical-oblong, stamens c. 60, with barbate appendages; fruit calyx lobes unequal, larger three up to 7 cm 1.8 cm. Shorea glauca occurs locally and often semi-gregariously, especially on rocky slopes and ridges, from sea-level up to 500(—600) m altitude. The density of the wood is 840—1135 kg/m³ at 15% moisture content. See also the table on wood properties.

[102]Burkill, I.H., 1966. A dictionary of the economic products of the Malay Peninsula. 2nd edition. Ministry of Agriculture and Co-operatives, Kuala Lumpur. Vol. 1 (A–H) pp. 1–1240. Vol. 2 (I–Z) pp. 1241–2444.
[253]Foxworthy, F.W., 1932. Dipterocarpaceae of the Malay Peninsula. Malayan Forest Records No 10. Printers Limited, Singapore. 289 pp.
[258]Fundter, J.M., 1982. Names for dipterocarp timbers and trees from Asia. Pudoc, Wageningen. 251 pp.
[297]Grewal, G.S., 1979. Air-seasoning properties of some Malaysian timbers. Malaysian Forest Service Trade Leaflet No 41. Malaysian Timber Industry Board, Kuala Lumpur. 26 pp.
[318]Heyne, K., 1927. De nuttige planten van Nederlands-Indië [The useful plants of the Dutch East Indies]. 2nd ed. 3 volumes. Departement van Landbouw, Nijverheid en Handel in Nederlandsch-Indië, 's-Gravenhage. 1953 pp.
[417]Lee, Y.H., Engku Abdul Rahman & Chu, Y.P., 1979. The strength properties of some Malaysian timbers. Revised edition. Malaysian Forest Service Trade Leaflet No 34. Malaysian Timber Industry Board, Kuala Lumpur. 107 pp.
[446]Lopez, D.T., 1983. Malaysian timbers – balau. Malaysian Forest Service Trade Leaflet No 78. Malaysian Timber Industry Board, Kuala Lumpur. 9 pp.
[628]Smitinand, T., Santisuk, T. & Phengklai, C., 1980. The manual of Dipterocarpaceae of mainland South-East Asia. Thai Forestry Bulletin 12: 1–110.
[677]Symington, C.F., 1941. Foresters' manual of dipterocarps. Malayan Forest Records No 16. Forest Department, Kuala Lumpur. pp. xliii + 244.
[748]van Steenis, C.G.G.J. & de Wilde, W.J.J.O. (Editors), 1950–. Flora Malesiana. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, Boston, London.

M.S.M. Sosef

Sosef, M.S.M., 1993. Shorea glauca King. In: Soerianegara, I. and Lemmens, R.H.M.J. (Editors): Plant Resources of South-East Asia No 5(1): Timber trees; Major commercial timbers. PROSEA Foundation, Bogor, Indonesia. Database record: prota4u.org/prosea