Ixora grandifolia (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Ixora grandifolia Zoll. & Moritzi

Protologue: Syst. Verz.: 65 (1846).

Synonyms

• Ixora crassifolia Ridley (1918),
• Ixora ridleyi Bremek. (1937),
• Ixora fluminalis Ridley.

Vernacular names

• Pink river ixora (En)
• Indonesia: sikatan (Javanese), ki soka (Sundanese)
• Malaysia: jarum hutan, kelat tandok, segading jantan (Peninsular)
• Thailand: khem yai (central, peninsular).

Distribution

Sri Lanka, Burma (Myanmar), Indo-China, Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore, Sumatra, Bangka, Java, Madura and Borneo.

Uses

In Malaysia a decoction of the root is used to treat ague and colic. The leaves are eaten before childbirth, at the commencement of labour and are considered to make delivery easier. An infusion of leaves is drunk against stomach-ache.

Observations

• A shrub or small to medium-sized tree up to 18 m tall, bark smooth to lenticellate, fissured or scaly, grey-brown.
• Leaves elliptical, ovate or obovate, 10-32 cm × 4-18 cm, thickly coriaceous, glabrous, base acute, rounded or cordate, apex acute or blunt, with 6-16 secondary veins, petiole 0.5-3.5 cm long, stipules broadly triangular, apiculate.
• Inflorescence subsessile, with 3 main branches, erect, spreading, up to 5 cm long, branches not jointed; flowers long-pedicellate, calyx tube 0.5-1 mm long, lobes triangular and less than 0.5 mm long, corolla tube 0.5-3 cm long, lobes 2.5-6 mm × 1.5-2 mm, white sometimes pink-tipped, fragrant, anthers grey.
• Fruit globose or strongly 2-lobed, up to 12 mm wide, red turning black.

I. grandifolia occurs in both lowland and hill forest, also on swampy ground.

Selected sources

• [97] Backer, C.A. & Bakhuizen van den Brink Jr, R.C., 1963-1968. Flora of Java. 3 volumes. Noordhoff, Groningen, the Netherlands. Vol. 1 (1963) 647 pp., Vol. 2 (1965) 641 pp., Vol. 3 (1968) 761 pp.
• [182] Bremekamp, C.E.B., 1937. The Malaysian species of the genus Ixora (Rub.). Contributions à l'étude de la flore des Indes Néerlandaises XXXIV. Bulletin du Jardin Botanique de Buitenzorg, Série III, 14: 197-367.
• [202] 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.
• [288] 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.
• [768] Koorders, S.H. & Valeton, T., 1894-1915. Bijdrage tot de kennis der boomsoorten van Java [Contribution to the knowledge of the tree species of Java]. 13 parts. G. Kolff & Co., Batavia, Dutch East Indies, 's-Gravenhage, the Netherlands.
• [1126] Perry, L.M., 1980. Medicinal plants of East and Southeast Asia. Attributed properties and uses. MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States & London, United Kingdom. 620 pp.
• [1227] Ridley, H.N., 1922-1925. The flora of the Malay Peninsula. 5 volumes. Government of the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States. L. Reeve & Co, London, United Kingdom.
• [1591] Wong, K.M., 1989. Ixora Linn. In: Ng, F.S.P. (Editor): Tree flora of Malaya. Vol. 4. Longman Malaysia, Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia. pp. 356-364.

Main genus page

• Ixora (Medicinal plants)

Authors

• M.C. Ysrael & J.L.C.H. van Valkenburg