Phaeanthus splendens (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Phaeanthus splendens Miq.

Protologue: Ann. Mus. Bot. Lugd.-Bat. 2: 40 (1865).

Family: Annonaceae

Synonyms

• Phaeanthus crassipetalus Becc. (1871),
• Phaeanthus lucidus Oliver (1887).

Vernacular names

• Indonesia: pisang-pisang
• Malaysia: mempisang (Peninsular), semukau (Malay, Iban, Sarawak).

Distribution

Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore, Sumatra, Bangka and Borneo.

Uses

In Sabah, the plant is used by local communities to reduce blood pressure. In Sarawak, the bark is used for making shoulder straps and the wood is used for beams.

Observations

• A shrub or tree up to 25 m tall, trunk up to 29 cm in diameter.
• Leaves obovate to elliptical, 8.5-23.6 cm × 2.5-9.2 cm, the midrib with 9-13 pairs of anastomosing veins, shiny.
• Cymes reduced to one axis.
• Flowers solitary or 2(-3) together, sepals and outer petals 1-2 mm long, inner petals 0.9-1.7(-2.6) cm long, 1.5-2.3 mm thick, stamens 60-80, connective prolongation not spread over edges and thecae, carpels 30-50, style absent.
• Monocarps (2-)6-15, 19-30 mm × 11-14 mm, glabrous, stipe 1.7-2.8(-3.3) cm, dark red to purple when ripe.

P. splendens occurs in primary and secondary lowland forest and freshwater swamp, on steep slopes, especially ridges, on various soils up to 550 m altitude. It is common in Borneo, relatively rare in Peninsular Malaysia.

Selected sources

• [299] Fasihuddin B.A. & Kamarudin, M.S., 1989. Phytochemical screening of plants of Sabah. In: Soepadmo, E., Goh, S.H., Wong, W.H., Din, L.B. & Chuah, C.H. (Editors): Perubatan Tradisi Malaysia [Malaysian traditional medicine]. Proceedings of the Seminar on Malaysian Traditional Medicine, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, June 10—11, 1988. pp. 147—158.
• [466] Inoue, T. & Hamid, A.A.(Editors), 1997. General flowering of tropical rainforests in Sarawak. Canopy Biology Program in Sarawak (CBPS): Series II. Center for Ecological Research, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan. 251 pp.
• [522] Kessler, P.J.A., 1993. Annonaceae. In: Kubitzki, K., Rohwer, J.G. & Bittrich, V. (Editors): The families and genera of vascular plants. Vol. 2. Springer Verlag, Berlin, Germany. pp. 93—129.
• [550] Kochummen, K.M., 1997. Tree flora of Pasoh Forest. Malayan Forest Records 44. Forestry Research Institute Malaysia, Kepong, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 461 pp.
• [1031] van Zuilen, C.M., 1996. Patterns and affinities in the Duguetia alliance (Annonaceae): molecular and morphological studies. Thesis, Utrecht University, the Netherlands. 133 pp.

Main genus page

• Phaeanthus

Authors

• N.O. Aguilar & J.B. Mols