4736

5(2): Timber trees; Minor commercial timbers

Toona calantas Merr. & Rolfe

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

Philipp. Journ. Sci., Bot. 3: 105 (1908).

Toona paucijuga Merr. (1912), Cedrela calantas (Merr. & Rolfe) Burkill (1930).

Philippines: kalantas (general), danupra (Iloko).

Throughout the Philippines.

The timber is used as surian, especially for furniture, musical instruments, cigar boxes and plywood. The wood is suitable for shiitake mushroom culture, and may be applied as an aromatic wood for its pleasant cedar smell. Decoctions of bark and flowers are used in local medicine because of their astringent, antiseptic and antispasmodic properties.

A medium-sized tree up to 25 m tall, with terete and straight bole branchless for up to 20 m and up to 100(—150) cm in diameter, buttresses not prominent; leaflets entire, glabrescent above; petals glabrous; fruit comparatively large, (2—)3—4 cm long, valves with numerous lenticels often smaller and denser towards the base of the fruit; seed unequally winged at both ends. Toona calantas occurs scattered in primary rain forest at low and medium altitudes. The stands have been depleted by logging and shifting cultivation. The correct taxonomic status is uncertain; possibly it is a large-fruited geographical variant of Toona sureni or Toona ciliata, although it may be a distinct species. It probably also occurs outside the Philippines. The density of the wood is about 430 kg/m³ at 15% moisture content.

[78]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.
[124]de Guzman, E.D., 1975. Conservation of vanishing timber species in the Philippines. In: Williams, J.T., Lamoureux, C.H. & Wulijarni- Soetjipto, N. (Editors): South East Asian plant genetic resources. Proceedings of a Symposium on South East Asian Plant Genetic Resources held at Kopo, Cisarua, 20–22 March 1975. International Board for Plant Genetic Resources, SEAMEO Regional Center for Tropical Biology/BIOTROP, Badan Penelitian dan Pengembangan Pertanian and Lembaga Biologi Nasional – LIPI, Bogor. pp. 198–204.
[125]de Guzman, E., Umali, R.M. & Sotalbo, E.D., 1986. Guide to the Philippine flora and fauna. Vol. 3: Dipterocarps, non-dipterocarps. Natural Resources Management Centre, Ministry of Natural Resources & University of the Philippines, Quezon City and Los Baños. xx + 414 pp.
[146]Edmonds, J.M., 1993. The potential value of Toona species (Meliaceae) as multipurpose and plantation trees in Southeast Asia. Commonwealth Forestry Review 72(3): 181–186.
[257]Jacalne, D.V. & Galinato, P.F., 1958. A study on the propagation of Cananga odorata Lamarck, Phaeanthus ebracteolatus Merrill, Intsia bijuga (Colebrooke) O.Kuntze, Cassia javanica Linnaeus and Toona calantas Merrill and Rolfe by cuttings. Philippine Journal of Forestry 14(1-4): 97—110.
[414]Meniado, J.A. et al., 1975–1981. Wood identification handbook for Philippine timbers. 2 volumes. Government Printing Office, Manila. 370 pp. & 186 pp.
[426]Merrill, E.D., 1923–1926. An enumeration of Philippine flowering plants. 4 volumes. Bureau of Printing, Manila.
[527]Reyes, L.J., 1938. Philippine woods. Technical Bulletin No 7. Commonwealth of the Philippines, Department of Agriculture and Commerce. Bureau of Printing, Manila. 536 pp. + 88 plates.
[626]Tamesis, F. & Aguilar, L., 1951. Important commercial timbers of the Philippines: their properties and uses. Popular Bulletin No 32. Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources. Bureau of Printing, Manila. 83 pp.
[738]Yao, C.E., 1987. Kalantas: a vanishing luxury lumber. Canopy International 13(6): pp. 1–2, 10.

R.H.M.J. Lemmens

Lemmens, R.H.M.J., 1995. Toona calantas Merr. & Rolfe. 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