Madhuca curtisii (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Madhuca curtisii (King & Gamble) Ridley

Protologue: Fl. Mal. Pen. 5 (Suppl.): 319 (1925).

Synonyms

• Ganua curtisii (King & Gamble) H.J. Lam (1925),
• Madhuca chrysocarpa (Pierre ex Dubard) Ridley (1925),
• Madhuca perakensis (King & Gamble) Ridley (1925).

Vernacular names

• Malaysia: mentua taban (Peninsular).

Distribution

Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo.

Uses

The timber is probably used as nyatoh.

Observations

• A medium-sized tree up to 30 m tall with columnar bole up to 60 cm in diameter, buttresses absent or small.
• Leaves evenly distributed to loosely clustered, narrowly obovate to obovate or elliptical, 7.5-15.5 cm × 3.5-7 cm, secondary veins joined near margin, glabrous, stipules up to 5 mm long, caducous.
• Flowers with sepals tufted with some hairs at apex, 8-10-lobed corolla, glabrous except for apex of lobes, 16-22 stamens and a hairy ovary.
• Fruit ovoid to ellipsoid, c. 2 cm × 1.3 cm, reddish-brown and minutely hairy, 1-2-seeded.
• Seed with very thin endosperm or lacking endosperm, and thick cotyledons.

M. curtisii grows on low hills up to 700 m altitude and is locally common (Penang, Perak). The density of the wood is 670-700 kg/m³ at 15% moisture content.

Selected sources

36, 100, 581, 728, 733, 779, 781.

Main genus page

• Madhuca (Timbers)

Authors

• R.H.M.J. Lemmens (selection of species)