Prunus javanica
Content
Description
Trees up to 35 m, rarely buttressed, bark smooth, peeling, red- to darkbrown, with distinct smell.
Leaves ovate to oblong-ovate, rarely lanceolate, 8-20 by 3-7.5 cm, base rounded to acute, margin entire, apex tapering to long-acuminate, surface densely black-punctate beneath, herbaceous to slighdy coriaceous, with 8-12 pairs of nerves, venation not very distinct, both sides glabrous, basal glands small, usually 2 on the petiole just below the blade, sometimes in the margin of the blade.
Stipules narrowly triangular to lanceolate, up to 5 by 1.5 mm, connate with their excentric keeled midribs.
Flowers 5(-6)-merous.
Sepals triangular, 0.5-1 mm long, hairy at apex.
Petals elliptic to orbicular, 2.5-4 mm long, white.
Stamens 25-50, filaments up to 6 mm, anthers up to 1 mm long.
Ovary glabrous, style up to 4.5 mm.
Fruits ovoid to ellipsoid, base rounded, apex acute, 15-23 by 7-12 mm, red when ripe, the endocarp glabrous inside.
Seed with glabrous testa.
Distribution
Asia-Tropical: Borneo present; Jawa (Jawa present); Lesser Sunda Is. (Bali present); Malaya (Peninsular Malaysia present); Maluku (Maluku present); New Guinea present (Irian Jaya present); Sulawesi (Sulawesi present); Sumatera (Sumatera present); Thailand (Thailand present); Vietnam (Vietnam present), Burma present, Palawan present, S Andaman I present, up to the border with Papua New Guinea present
Burma, Thailand, Vietnam, S Andaman I.; Malesia: Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo, Java (not seen from East), Palawan, Celebes, Bali (dubious, only one specimen with obscure label), Moluccas, New Guinea (only seen from Irian Jaya, up to the border with Papua New Guinea).
Uses
Rarely noted. Bark used for rice-bins (Sabah, Tikau SAN 26474), as vermicide for buffalo (Sabah, Kandilis SAN 10323) and as fish poison (Kalimantan, Nooteboom 4449).
Notes
The length/width index of the leaves varies from 2 to 4, but narrow-leaved specimens (especially collected in Borneo, but by no means restricted to the island) are not separated by a discontinuity from the others.
Citation
Merr. 1923 – In: Enum. Philipp. Row. Pl.: 234
Miq. 1855 – In: Fl. Ind. Bat: 366
Koord. 1913 – In: Adas: pl. 95
Koord. & Valeton 1904: p. 169. – In: Ic. Bogor.: t. 140
Ridley 1922 – In: Fl. Mai. Penins.: 672
Backer & Bakh. f. 1964 – In: R Java: 521
Merr. 1921: Enum. Born. Flow. Pl.: 289
Prance & Whitmore 1973 – In: Tree Fl. Malaya: 338
Cockbum 1980: p. 98. – In: Trees Sabah: f. 26