Melodinus orientalis (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Melodinus orientalis Blume

Protologue: Apocynaceae

Vernacular names

• Indonesia: areuy ki kadanca (Sundanese)
• Malaysia: getah ujul.

Distribution

Malaysia (Peninsular), Indonesia, Thailand (peninsular).

Uses

The latex is yellow-green, blackening when exposed to air; it is said to be highly poisonous and turns into an inferior kind of sticky rubber, used to adulterate good quality rubber. The bark has a useful short fibre similar to the one in pineapple leaves.

Observations

A woody climber up to 60 m long with glabrous branchlets containing latex. Leaves opposite; petiole up to 1 cm long; blade elliptical, 6-12 cm × 2-4 cm, base cuneate, apex acuminate. Inflorescence an axillary cyme, in clusters up to 2 cm long; flowers 5-merous, fragrant, white; corolla tubular, tube about 5 mm long, lobes 2 mm long. Fruit a hard-walled, solitary globose berry, 6-7 cm in diameter. Seed flattened ellipsoid, 1-1.5 cm long. M. orientalis grows in hill forest, usually at 700-1400 m altitude. In Thailand and Indo-China another 2 species occur, possibly with similar uses and with edible fruits: M. cambodiensis Pierre ex Spire (synonym: M. monogynus auct. non Roxb.) and M. cochinchinensis (Lour.) Merr.

Selected sources

5, 11, 20, 23, 34.