Common Name:

General Information

Barringtonia procera is an evergreen tree with a crown about 5 metres wide; it can grow 10 - 20 metres tall. The bole can be free of branches for about 20% of its height and ranges from about 2 - 45cm in diameter[, ].
The tree is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, medicine and source of wood. A common and popular nut in some coastal areas of Papua New Guinea. The seeds are sold in local markets, and are considered to have a significant commercial potential to a wider market[]. The tree is cultivated in home gardens and around villages, and is generally allowed to remain and is semi-cultivated when forest is cleared[, , ].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

Australasia - eastern New Guinea, Bismarck Island, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu.

Habitat

Secondary rainforests at low elevations[]. Usually associated with human activity, in old gardens, mature coconut plantations, and coastal villages, and in remnants of secondary lowland rainforests[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Tree
Height	10.00 m
Pollinators	Moths, Bats
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Semi-cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of lowland wet tropical, moist topical and wet subtropical climatic zones, it can be found at elevations up to 600 metres. The plant grows in areas where the mean annual temperature is around 27°c, with the hottest moth around 29 - 34°c and the coolest 20 - 23°c. It cannot tolerate even light frosts. The mean annual rainfall is within the range 1,500 - 4,300mm, usually with a year-round distribution, sometimes with a short dry season[, ].
Prefers a position in partial shade, though it can tolerate full sun[]. It grows in moderate to highly fertile, coastal coral soils with light to heavy textures, tolerating rocky, shallow, saline and infertile soils The tree grows well in coastal soils high in pH (up to 8.5), but it does not tolerate waterlogged soils[]. It has medium to high tolerance of steady and strong winds including cyclones. Branches and twigs do not easily snap, but they may be broken off by strong winds. The trees rarely suffer from windthrow due to their height, open canopy structure, and good lateral rooting system[].
Generally, the tree grows moderately quickly, but this varies significantly depending upon trees and growth conditions.
The mean annual increment (MAI) for height of trees up to 5 years is 62cm; thereafter the MAI increased to about 1 metre annually for the next 5 years. Thirty-year-old trees had an average MAI of about 1.4 metres[].
Diameter at breast height appears to be relatively uniform with age. Trees aged 5, , , and 20 years old have all attained an MAI for diameter at breast height on the order of 14 - 16cm[].
Trees begin flowering as early as 1.5 years (dwarf variety), although the average is probably 3 years[].
The tree can flower and produce fruit all year round[].
Annual yields of the seeds is estimated at 1.5 - 7 kilos per tree. By the age of 20 years trees can yield 370 - 550 kilos of seeds per hectare[].
Trees coppice and pollard well, with young leafy shoots regrowing rapidly following cutting. Stumps as short as 10cm coppice well[].

Edible Uses

Seed[, , ]. The seed kernel inside the hard shell inside the fruit is about 30mm by 15 - 20mm wide[].

Young leaves - cooked and eaten as a vegetable[].

Medicinal

The bark is used in the treatment of stomach ailments and gonorrhoea[].
Sap from the bark has been used for treating ciguatera poisoning, coughs, and urinary infections[].

The leaves are used to treat inflammation of the ear and headaches[].

Agroforestry Uses:

The tree prefers light shade, which makes it a good companion to overstorey tree species such as vi (Spondias cyathera), canarium nut (Canarium spp.), and breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis). Its open canopy structure allows sufficient light penetration to the ground level for other crops such as roots, cereals and other understorey crops such as sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) and a nutritious native leafy tree spinach called bele or edible hibiscus (Abelmoschus manihot), to be interplanted under it. It has been used as a trellis tree for the cash crop betel leaf (Piper betle),as well as for marking land boundaries and creating windbreaks[].
The tree has a well formed lateral root system, yet does not appear to cause major impediments during soil preparation for understory crops, e.g., making mounds for the root crops, nor does it seem to compete heavily with understory crops[].
It can be used in plantations to provide shade for tree crops such as cacao (Theobroma cacao), joint fir (Gnetum gnemon), and betel nut (Areca catechu)[].

Other Uses

The wood is light in weight. It is used for canoe paddles, casing, light construction[].
The wood is used as a quick-burning firewood[].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe.

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