PROSEA Handbook Number
12(2): Medicinal and poisonous plants 2
Taxon
Ailanthus triphysa (Dennst.) Alston
This article should be read together with the article on the genus: Ailanthus in the Handbook volume indicated above in this database.
Protologue
Handb. fl. Ceylon 4, Suppl.: 41 (1931).
Synonyms
Ailanthus malabarica DC. (1825), Ailanthus imberbiflora F. Muell. (1862), Ailanthus philippinensis Merr. (1906).
Vernacular Names
White siris (En). Indonesia: kayu langit (general), ki pahit(Sundanese), kirontasi (Sulawesi). Philippines: malakamias (general), kalauag (Bikol). Burma (Myanmar): o-dein. Thailand: makkom (northern), mayom-pa (central), mayom-hom (south-eastern). Vietnam: b[us]t, c[af]ng hom th[ow]m.
Distribution
India, Sri Lanka, Burma (Myanmar), Indo-China, southern China, Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Java, Borneo (Sabah, East Kalimantan), Sulawesi, the Philippines, and northern Australia (Queensland and northern New South Wales). It is planted in the arid zones of Africa.
Uses
The resin is used medicinally in India and as incense in India and Indo-China. The bark and leaves are renowned as a tonic and appetitive and possess febrifuge properties. The bark is employed in dyspepsia and diarrhoea as well as to relieve cough and bronchitis. In Vietnam, the leaves are recommended in cephalalgia and gastralgia. The leaves are also used to dye silk black.
Observations
A large tree up to 45 m tall, bark dimpled; leaves paripinnate with 6—17(—30) pairs of entire leaflets, (5—)9—15(—26) cm long, covered with velvety hairs below and with many glands scattered over the lower surface; petals glabrous, carpels (2—)3(—4), glabrous; samara 4.5—8 cm long. Ailanthus triphysa is comparatively rare and occurs in evergreen and seasonal forests up to 600 m altitude.
Image
![](./image/0008871.jpg) | Ailanthus triphysa (Dennst.) Alston - 1, leafy twig; 2, leaflet; 3, fruit |
Selected Sources
[74] Backer, C.A. & Bakhuizen van den Brink Jr, R.C., 1964—1968. Flora of Java. 3 volumes. Noordhoff, Groningen, the Netherlands. Vol. 1 (1964) 647 pp., Vol. 2 (1965) 641 pp., Vol. 3 (1968) 761 pp.
[135] Burkill, I.H., 1966. A dictionary of the economic products of the Malay Peninsula. Revised reprint. 2 volumes. Ministry of Agriculture and Co-operatives, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Vol. 1 (A—H) pp. 1—1240, Vol. 2 (I—Z) pp. 1241—2444.
[216] Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, 1985. The wealth of India: a dictionary of Indian raw materials & industrial products. Revised Edition. Vol. 1. Publications and Information Directorate, New Delhi, India. 513 pp.
[311] Flora of Thailand (various editors), 1970—. The Forest Herbarium, Royal Forest Department, Bangkok, Thailand.
[406] Hewson, H.J., 1985. Simaroubaceae. In: George, A.S. (Editor): Flora of Australia. Vol. 25. Melianthaceae to Simaroubaceae. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra, Australia. pp. 188—197.
[465] Indira, E.P., 1996. Breeding systems in Ailanthus triphysa. Journal of Tropical Forestry 12(4): 194—198.
[739] Nguyen Van Duong, 1993. Medicinal plants of Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. Mekong Printing, Santa Ana, California, United States. 528 pp.
[746] Nooteboom, H.P., 1962. Simaroubaceae. In: van Steenis C.G.G.J. (Editor): Flora Malesiana. Series 1, Vol. 6. Wolters-Noordhoff, Groningen, the Netherlands. pp. 193—226.
[788] Pételot, A., 1952—1954. Les plantes médicinales du Cambodge, du Laos et du Vietnam [The medicinal plants of Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam]. 4 volumes. Centre National de Recherches Scientifiques et Techniques, Saigon, Vietnam.
[949] Soepadmo, E., Wong, K.M. & Saw, L.G. (Editors), 1995—. Tree flora of Sabah and Sarawak. Sabah Forestry Department, Forest Research Institute Malaysia and Sarawak Forestry Department, Kepong, Malaysia.
Author(s)
J.L.C.H. van Valkenburg
Correct Citation of this Article
van Valkenburg, J.L.C.H., 2001. Ailanthus triphysa (Dennst.) Alston. In: van Valkenburg, J.L.C.H. and Bunyapraphatsara, N. (Editors): Plant Resources of South-East Asia No 12(2): Medicinal and poisonous plants 2. PROSEA Foundation, Bogor, Indonesia. Database record:
prota4u.org/prosea