4240

5(2): Timber trees; Minor commercial timbers

Fagraea crenulata Maingay ex C.B. Clarke

This article should be read together with the article on the genus: Fagraea in the Handbook volume indicated above in this database.

Hook.f., Fl. Brit. India 4: 83 (1883).

Cabbage tree (En). Indonesia: malabira, bebira (Sumatra), kayu bulan (Kalimantan). Malaysia: malabera (Peninsular). Thailand: niam ruesee, lumpang (peninsular).

Southern Vietnam, peninsular Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and southern and south-western Borneo.

The wood is used as tembesu. It is very valuable for piling and resists borers when used without removing the bark; it has also been applied as firewood. The tree is planted locally as an ornamental and is confusingly similar to Terminalia catappa L.

A medium-sized tree up to 25 m tall, bole up to 70 cm in diameter, crown flat-topped and with spreading branches reminiscent of Terminalia spp., bark surface deeply and coarsely ridged and fissured, pale grey to yellowish-grey, inner bark pale, young trunk and twigs with simple or split prickles; leaves large, broadly obovate, 17—45 cm 12.5—25 cm, apex broadly rounded to slightly truncate, secondary veins prominent below, petiole absent or very short, stipules adnate to the petiole or midrib, narrow and acute; inflorescence terminal, pedicel with bracteoles about halfway; corolla tube funnel-shaped, 1.7—2 cm long, stigma peltate and faintly 2-lobed; fruit ellipsoid, 2—3 cm long. Fagraea crenulata is found in permanent or periodic swamps behind the mangrove belt or along tidal rivers. The density of the tough wood is 440—640 kg/m³ at 15% moisture content. The wood is usually distinguishable from that of other Fagraea spp. by the absence of tyloses.

[162]Flora Malesiana (various editors), 1950–. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, Boston, London.
[163]Flore du Cambodge du Laos et du Viêtnam (various editors), 1960–. Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris.
[175]Foxworthy, F.W., 1927. Commercial timber trees of the Malay Peninsula. Malayan Forest Records No 3. Forest Department, Kuala Lumpur. 185 pp.
[216]HallT, F., Oldeman, R.A.A. & Tomlinson, P.B., 1978. Tropical trees and forests – an architectural analysis. Springer Verlag, Berlin, Heidelberg, New York. 441 pp.
[294]Khoo, K.C. & Peh, T.B., 1982. Proximate chemical composition of some Malaysian hardwoods. Malaysian Forester 45(2): 244–262.
[474]Oey Djoen Seng, 1951. Perbandingan berat dari jenis-jenis kaju Indonesia dan pengartian beratnja kaju untuk keperluan praktek [Specific gravity of Indonesian woods and its significance for practical use]. Laporan No 46. Balai Penjelidikan Kehutanan, Bogor. 183 pp.
[574]Smitinand, T., 1980. Thai plant names. Royal Forest Department, Bangkok. 379 pp.
[705]Whitmore, T.C. & Ng, F.S.P. (Editors), 1972–1989. Tree flora of Malaya. A manual for foresters. 2nd edition. 4 volumes. Malayan Forest Records No 26. Longman Malaysia SDN. Berhad, Kuala Lumpur & Petaling Jaya.

M.S.M. Sosef

Sosef, M.S.M., 1995. Fagraea crenulata Maingay ex C.B. Clarke. In: Lemmens, R.H.M.J., Soerianegara, I. and Wong, W.C. (Editors): Plant Resources of South-East Asia No 5(2): Timber trees; Minor commercial timbers. PROSEA Foundation, Bogor, Indonesia. Database record: prota4u.org/prosea