Common Name:

General Information

Litsea elliptica is an evergreen tree that can grow from 10 - 44 metres tall. The bole can be up to 78cm in diameter[, ].
The tree is harvested from the wild for local use as a condiment and source of wood. The wood is also traded as 'medang' timber[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

Southeast Asia - Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia to New Guinea.

Habitat

An upper canopy tree in undisturbed mixed dipterocarp and sub-montane forests; usually on hillsides and ridges with sandy soils; at elevations up to 1,200 metres[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Tree
Height	38.00 m
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

The bark, wood, leaves and fruits are aromatic and reminiscent of the smell of a species of giant water bug (Lethocerus indicus) , which is also used as a flavouring material in the 'Nam Prik, mentioned in 'Edible Uses'[].

Edible Uses

The young leaves are eaten as a vegetable side dish, and are used as a flavouring material in Thai 'Nam Prik', a
local spicy dip[].

Medicinal

None known

Other Uses

The wood is locally used for house construction, and is used for making mortars and pestles[, ].
There are a number of tree species (including this one) from Peninsular Malaysia that are in the family Lauraceae and produce a useful timber that is either not distinct enough in itself, or is in insufficient supply, to warrant being traded individually. These various species have been lumped together under the trade name ‘medang’[].
We do not have a specific description of the wood from this species, but a general description of medang timber is as follows:-
The heartwood is very variable, from light-straw to red-brown and olive brown; the sapwood is ill-defined. The texture is moderately fine but even; the grain interlocked or wavy; the surface dull. The wood is not durable. It is easy to slightly difficult to resaw, and easy to moderately easy to cross-cut; easy to plane and the surface produced is smooth to moderately smooth. It is suitable for decorative work such as interior finishing, panelling, furniture and cabinet making. It is also suitable for plywood manufacture, whilst the heavier species are suitable for medium construction under cover[]

Propagation

Seed -

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Captcha: if i have 3 bananas, and i eat them all, how many bananas did i just eat?