Lecythis Loefl. (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Lecythis Loefl.

Family: Lecythidaceae

Major species and synonyms

• Lecythis minor Jacq., synonyms: Chytroma bipartita (Pittier) R. Knuth, Eschweilera valida (Miers) Nied., L. elliptica Kunth.

• Lecythis ollaria Loefl., synonyms: Eschweilera cordata (O. Berg) Miers, L. cordata O. Berg.

• Lecythis pisonis Cambess., synonyms: L. densa Miers, L. usitata Miers, L. velloziana Miers.

• Lecythis zabucajo Aubl. (sometimes spelled zabucaja ) , synonyms: L. crassinoda Miers, L. davisii Sandwith, L. hians A.C. Smith.

Vernacular names

• Sabucaia nut, paradise nut, monkey pot (En). Marmite de singe (Fr).

Distribution

Lecythis encompasses 26 species distributed throughout the moist forests of Latin America from south-eastern Brazil to Costa Rica. Occasionally several of them are cultivated also elsewhere, including in botanical gardens and experimental plantings in South-East Asia.

Uses

Many Lecythis species are popular for their oil-rich seeds which are consumed raw, boiled or roasted and sometimes in cakes and candies. The oil extracted from the seeds is used locally in making soap and for lighting purposes. Lecythis trees are also sources of timber for heavy constructions requiring durability and high impact resistance. The woody fruits, once empty, are made into plates, pots and other small utensils. Medicinally, Lecythis oil is thought to be cardiotonic and haemostatic. Several Lecythis species are grown as ornamentals.

Observations

Trees with simple, alternate, often deciduous leaves, racemose or spicate inflorescences, bisexual, zygomorphic, 6-merous flowers with peculiar androecium forming a basal ring of 70-1000 stamens inserted on the summit of the ovary, expanded on one side to form a strap-like structure arching over the summit of the ovary, the strap without appendages proximally (ligule) and with echinate appendages distally (hood), pistil with usually 4-locular ovary and well-differentiated style; fruit a woody, circumscissile capsule (pyxis or "monkey pot"), base remaining on the tree on dehiscence, calyx lobes persisting as a woody rim; seed often with basal, fleshy aril.

• L. minor . Tree up to 25 m tall; leaves ovate-elliptical to oblong, 8-25 cm × 4-10 cm; inflorescence racemose, terminal or in axils of uppermost leaves, up to 35 cm long, 10-75-flowered, flowers white; fruit cup-like, globose or conical, diameter up to 9 cm; seeds fusiform, 2-3 cm × 1-2 cm, reddish-brown, aril white.

• L. ollaria . Tree up to 20 m tall; leaves ovate, 6-15 cm × 4-8 cm; inflorescence terminal or in axils of uppermost leaves, racemose, up to 20 cm long, 15-25-flowered, flowers yellow-white; fruit cup-shaped, up to 8 cm in diameter; seed brown, with about 4 longitudinal, lighter coloured, impressed veins, and an aril.

• L. pisonis . Tree up to 50 m tall; leaves elliptical, 6-18 cm × 3-8 cm; inflorescence ramiflorous, racemose, up to 15 cm long, 16-20-flowered, flowers purple or white; fruit globose or conical, up to 30 cm long; seeds 10-30 per fruit, fusiform, 4-6 cm × 2-3 cm, aril large, white.

• L. zabucajo . Tree up to 55 m tall; leaves elliptical, 6-12 cm × 2-6 cm; inflorescence ramiflorous, racemose, up to 10 cm long, 5-30-flowered, flowers yellow or white, tinged with purple at margins; fruit globose to conical, diameter up to 18 cm; seed fusiform, 2-4 cm × 1-1.5 cm, with aril.

Lecythis g rows in lowland moist forest at elevations below 800 m, with 1000-2000 mm rainfall per year, average annual temperatures of 23-27°C and soil pH 4-8. Some species tolerate a moderate dry season of up to 6 months. Lecythis and related Lecythidaceae with zygomorphic flowers have a highly intricate method of pollination. The hood of the androecium, which is covered with appendages bearing sterile "fodder" pollen, acts as a landing platform for pollinators. The hood is appressed against the ring of fertile stamens forcing the back of visiting insects against the pollen. When the seeds are ripe bats play an important role in their distribution while eating the aril.

Lecythis is normally propagated from seed which should be sown immediately after dehiscence because it loses its viability completely when dried to 15% moisture content. The seed of L. pisonis contains 43-63% oil and is comparable in composition to maize oil. The major fatty acids are palmitic acid 9-12%, stearic acid 4-8%, oleic acid 27-43% and linoleic acid 38-56%. The seed also contains protein 20%, vitamin C 17 mg/100 g, P 5-6 mg/g, Na 50 mg/g and K 46 mg/g. The seeds of L. minor and L. ollaria can cause nausea, anxiety and giddiness and when eaten in larger quantities may cause temporary loss of hair and nails. This toxicity is reported especially from areas with seleniferous soils and has been traced to be due to a selenium-containing analogue of cystathionine. The heartwood of Lecythis is light to dark salmon, strong, resistant to white rot and brown rot and to insects, including termites, and moderately resistant to barnacles. Its technical characteristics include: air dry density 750-1150 kg/m³, bending strength 100-200 N/mm², modulus of elasticity 13-25 kN/mm², compression parallel to grain 95 N/mm²and Janka side harness 14 000 N. The wood is easy to split and the bark has been recommended for tanning.

The Biological Dynamics of Forest Fragments Project (BDFFP) near Manãus, Brazil, Centro Agronómico Tropical de Investigación y Enzeñanza (CATIE) in Costa Rica and several botanical gardens in Latin America have germplasm collections of Lecythis . Lecythis seed is currently commercially collected mainly from wild stands (cultivation is practised on a small scale only). Strong demand for exotic oil products and for edible nuts justifies research into possibilities of its domestication, not only in Latin America, but also in other parts of the humid tropics including South-East Asia.

Selected sources

19, 26, 33, 37, 77, 80, 81, 82, 83, 99, 128, 129.