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plants text index | photo
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| coastal plants |
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nutmeg Knema globularia Family Myristicaceae updated Aug 09 Where seen? A pretty tree with fresh green leaves and bright red fruit, it is a rare tree. There are several on the rocky cliffsides of Chek Jawa, Pulau Ubin. According to Hugh Tan, it is also found on St. John's Island. It was previously found on Changi and Pulau Ubin. Elsewhere, it grows on rocky and sandy coasts and is common in lowland forests of Malaysia. It was previously known as Knema missionis or Knema sphaerula. Features: A tall tree (4-5m to a maximum of 24m). Leaves leathery and thin, hairy beneath and arranged alternately. Flowers small, brown and woolly on the outside. Fruits globular with a thin skin, when ripe, splitting to reveal a bright red and pulpy aril. The fruits are probably dispersed by birds. Bark brown to dark green and smooth-scaly to scaly. Twigs are slender and at first rusty scrufy turning dark brown or black. Human uses: According to Burkill, the wood is not durable but it is sometimes used for rafters. Status and threats: Previously thought to be extinct, with the discoveries of some trees in Pulau Ubin and St. John's Island it is now listed as 'Critically Endangered' in the Red List of threatened plants of Singapore. |
 Chek Jawa, May 09 |
 Chek Jawa, May 09 |
 Chek Jawa, May 09 |
 Chek Jawa, Jun 07 |
 Chek Jawa, Jun 07 |
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 Chek Jawa, Aug 04 |
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 Chek Jawa, Feb 04  |
 Chek Jawa, Sep 09  |
 Chek Jawa, Sep 09 |
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References
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Singapore University Press. 222 pp.|
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