Pisonia grandis (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Pisonia grandis R.Br.

Protologue: Prodr. fl. Nov. Holl. 1: 422 (1810).

Family: Nyctaginaceae

Synonyms

• Pisonia alba Span. (1841),
• Pisonia sylvestris Teijsm. & Binnend. (1852),
• Ceodes grandis (R.Br.) D.Q. Lu (1996).

Vernacular names

• Cabbage tree, lettuce tree, Moluccan cabbage (English, "Alba")
• Indonesia: wijaya kusuma (Javanese, wild type), kol bandang (Javanese, Sundanese, "Alba"), dagdag see (Balinese, wild type), sayur putih pulu (Moluccas, "Alba" and wild type)
• Philippines: maluko, koles-maluko (Tagalog, "Alba")
• Thailand: saeng chan (Bangkok).

Distribution

From the islands in the Indian Ocean, the coasts of India and Sri Lanka (introduced and cultivated) to the islands in the southern Chinese sea, throughout South-East Asia (not in Sumatra, rare in Kalimantan and Sulawesi), to some islands at the northern Australian coast, and further throughout Micronesia and Polynesia (except Hawaii).

Uses

In Indonesia, the leaves of the cultivar "Alba" are crushed or heated and applied to swellings or open ulcers, corns, calluses, or applied for oedema of the legs. In Rotuma, the leaves are used for dysentery. Young leaves of "Alba" are a popular vegetable, rich in calcium.

Observations

• An irregularly branched tree, 13(-30) m tall, smooth, twigs pale brown, deeply furrowed when dry.
• Leaves opposite, elliptical, oblong or ovate, 10-20(-30) cm × 6-10(-15) cm, base acute to cordate, apex acute or acuminate, veins red or dark coloured, petiole 1-6 cm long.
• Thyrse terminal, 1.7-3.5 cm × 3-4.5 cm, peduncle 1.5 cm long, accrescent to 3 cm, bracteoles 2-4.
• Flowers bisexual, pedicel 1-1.5 mm long, perianth funnel-shaped, 4 mm long, 5-lobed, with 5 rows of black glands, stamens 6-10, exserted for 2 mm, stigma fimbriate, included.
• Anthocarp elongate to club-shaped, 12 mm × 2.5 mm, 5-ribbed, each bearing a row of viscid prickles, 1 mm long, hairy between the ribs.

P. grandis occurs in open, dry to semi-dry localities along sandy or rocky coasts, or on limestone, from sea-level up to 1200 m altitude, often dominant on atolls and other small islands. The bright green-yellow-leaved cultivar of P. grandis, "Alba", and sometimes the wild type, are cultivated in Bali and Java around houses and in hedges. It is rarely flowers in Bali and neighbouring islands.

Selected sources

• [207] Corner, E.J.H., 1988. Wayside trees of Malaya. 3rd Edition. 2 volumes. The Malayan Nature Society, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 774 pp.
• [215] Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, 1948—1976. The wealth of India: a dictionary of Indian raw materials & industrial products. 11 volumes. Publications and Information Directorate, New Delhi, India.
• [407] Heyne, K., 1950. De nuttige planten van Indonesië [The useful plants of Indonesia]. 3rd Edition. 2 volumes. W. van Hoeve, 's-Gravenhage, the Netherlands/Bandung, Indonesia. 1660 + CCXLI pp.
• [696] Morton, J.F., 1981. Atlas of medicinal plants of Middle America. Bahamas to Yucatan. Charles C. Thomas, Springfield, Illinois, United States. 1420 pp.
• [804] Premakumari, S., Geetha, G.& Devadas, R.P., 1978. Availability of calcium from tree lettuce (Pisonia alba) for school children. Indian Journal of Nutrition and Dietetics 15(3): 67—71.

Main genus page

• Pisonia

Authors

• G.H. Schmelzer & N. Bunyapraphatsara