Common Name: Poumuli

General Information

Flueggea flexuosa is a deciduous, dioecious shrub or small or rarely medium-sized tree with a compact crown; it can grow up to 10 metres, exceptionally to 30 metres tall[, , ]. The bole is often irregular, branchless for up to 6 metres, up to 30cm in diameter, sometimes with indistinct buttresses[].
Within its native range, the tree is extensively planted in gardens and homesteads to provide timber, shade, wind protection etc[].
Flueggea flexuosa is a timber tree that was previously (2018) classified as 'Vulnerable' because of population declines caused by habitat loss as a result of logging and shifting cultivation. However, the species has a wide native range and is often replanted and grown in plantations to supply timber.The plant is currently classified as 'Least Concern' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2019)[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

Southeast Asia - Philippines, New Guinea, through the Pacific to Fiji, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu.

Habitat

Primary forest at low elevations and in dense shrub savannah. It is often a pioneer, growing in river floodplains, fallowed fields and abandoned coconut plantations[].

Properties

Weed Potential	Yes
Conservation Status	Least Concern
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Deciduous Tree
Height	10.00 m
Pollinators	Bees
Self-fertile	No
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of the lowland, humid tropics, where it is found at elevations from sea level up to 900 metres]303]. It grows in areas where the mean maximum temperature is 26 - 32°c and the minimum temperature tolerated is 12°c[]. The mean annual rainfall is in the range 1,500 - 5,000mm[], usually distributed throughout the year, but the plant also tolerates a dry season of up to 4 months[]..
Requires a sunny position[]. Succeeds in a wide range of soils including coralline, red clay, poorly drained, and coastal soils[]. Plants can tolerate a small amount of salt spray and are moderately wind resistant[]. Established plants are somewhat drought tolerant[].
The plant is potentially invasive outside of its natural range, though it appears to have very limited potential to become abundant or a problem in little-disturbed native forest communities or on farmlands[].
On good sites, the plant can grow more than 1.5 metres per year for the first 5 - 10 years, then less than 0.75 metres per year[].
Plants can commence flowering when 2 - 3 years old[]. In some areas, such as Samoa, the plant flowers all year round[].
From the age of about 3 - 4 years, the plant demonstrates good self-pruning characteristics[]. The
lower branches are progressively shaded out, dying, and eventually being shed[].
Trees can be a bit reluctant to resprout after coppicing. If the trunk is cut 1 metre above ground level, then plants up to the age of 10 years usually resprout successfully[].
Mature trees might survive low-intensity ground fires, but generally this species does not grow back after fire[].
A dioecious species, both male and female forms need to be grown if fruit and seed are required.

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

The rasped bark is applied medicinally in a fever-reducing drink[, ].

The shredded root is used medicinally[].

Agroforestry Uses:

A pioneer species often found in disturbed soils, along rivers, in fallow fields and old coconut plantations. It plays an important environmental role in the revegetation of various types of disturbed sites[, , ]. It also appears to be useful for stabilizing the soil[].
The trees provide a windbreak and shelter for adjacent crops. They also minimize the growth of weeds and need for cutting[]. It makes an excellent narrow, low windbreak, especially younger trees with more dense foliage, up to about 10 years of age[].
It has been used to provide early shade for both canarium nut and rattan, as well as quicker economic returns while the longer-maturing crops are developing[]. It has potential as a shade tree for cacao, particularly because it can assist in pest control[].

Other Uses

Leaves of the red-veined form are used to stain Pandanus leaves a charcoal colour[].
The purple juice from the fruit is used as a dye[].

The heartwood is pale yellowish brown or reddish brown, and sometimes hardly distinguishable from the pale sapwood, which is present as a 1 - 3 cm wide band. The grain is straight and the texture moderately fine[]. The wood is heavy, very hard and strong, resistant to drywood termites and fungi, durable in sea water, and very well suited for service in ground contact[, ]. The timber is easily worked. The wood is locally highly valued for house and fence posts, and additionally used for joists, rafters and tool handles, bridges, and marine piles[, , ].
The wood makes an excellent, hot-burning fuel[, ].

Propagation

Seed - ripe fruits should be soaked in water overnight and then depulped by rubbing and washing over a fine mesh sieve to remove the pulpy material[]. The seed does not require pre-treatment - it should be sown in a potting compost and covered by about 1 - 2 mm of the compost[]. The first seeds should germinate within 2 - 5 weeks[]. The tiny seedlings grow very rapidly and can be transplanted into final nursery pots at the two- or four-leaf stage (about 10 days after germination)[]. Seedlings prefer a position in full sun[].
Under normal growing conditions, the seedlings are ready to plant out in 16 - 20 weeks. The ideal seedling height for
outplanting is about 25 cm[].
Seeds are orthodox, i.e., they retain viability when dried and stored. They may be kept for many years in airtight
containers under refrigeration at 4°c[].

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