| |
Seashore
mangosteen
Garcinia hombroniana
Family Guttiferae
A few of these rare trees grow on the rocks at the shore of Chek Jawa,
but are hard to distinguish from the other trees.
Related to the mangosteen that we eat, the Seashore mangosteen has
attractive bright red fruits that smell like apples. Don't eat them
though; it may cause severe constipation! Each tree is either male
or female. The male flowers are small cream-coloured and have a rather
sickly sweet smell.
The tree has grey bark that peels off in little flakes revealing a
paler grey to buff new bark. Like other members of this family, if
it is cut, it produces a white latex. 'Guttiferae' means 'latex-bearing'.
The trees in this family are adapted to growing in the shade of taller
trees (understorey trees).
Human uses: The mangosteens that
we eat come from the Mangosteen tree (Garcinia mangostana).
There are suggestions that the Mangosteen tree is a natural hybrid
of the Seashore mangosteen (Garcinia hombroniana) and another
relative Garcinia malaccensis. The Mangosteen tree curiously,
and fortituosly for those who grow it for its fruit, appears to be
self-fertilising. Male trees have apparently never been seen! The
rind of the Mangosteen is traditionally used as an astringent, to
treat diarrhoea and high fever. The latex of some other species in
the family is used to make a paint. But that of the seashore mangosteen
does not easily form an emulsion so it cannot be used for this purpose.
Status and threats: The Seashore
mangosteen is a rare, endangered tree in Singapore. |
|
Peeling bark |
|
quick
facts
To about 10m tall, a few trees grow on the rocks right at
the shore of Chek Jawa |
