Common Name: Pacific Walnut

General Information

Dracontomelon dao is an evergreen (or briefly deciduous when growing in areas with a dry season), large tree that can grow up to 55 metres tall but is usually much smaller[]. The straight, cylindrical bole of larger specimens usually has large buttresses up to 5 metres high, it can be branchless for up to 20 metres and 100 - 120cm in diameter[, , ].
The tree is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, medicine and source of wood. The fruit is sometimes sold in local markets and is a popular food in some areas[, ]. The tree is planted as a fruit tree in villages, and also as an ornamental in roadside plantings[, ].

Known Hazards

The sap of the tree may be irritating and /or poisonous[].

Botanical References

Range

E. Asia - southern China, India, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Philippines, to Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands,

Habitat

Scattered on well drained to poorly drained clayey to stony soils, mainly alluvial flats and swampy areas in primary or secondary, evergreen or semi-deciduous (monsoon) forest from sea level to elevations of 500, occasionally 1,000 metres[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Semi-deciduous Tree
Height	25.00 m
Cultivation Status	Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of the lowland tropics growing in areas with a high rainfall that is more or less evenly distributed throughout the year or, less frequently, in areas with a short dry season where the tree is briefly deciduous[]. It experiences a mean annual rainfall in the range 1,800 - 2,900 mm[].
Trees tolerate some shade[]. Prefers a sunny position[]. Found in the wild growing on clayey to stony soils, mainly alluvial flats, and in swampy areas[].
Inflorescences are produced at the base of new shoots[]. The tree is reported to bear flowers almost throughout the year, although a more concentrated flowering occurs when the tree is almost leafless and before new bronze-coloured leaves appear[].
Young trees can reach a height of 3 - 4 metres after 2 years and 6.5 metres after 5.5 years[].
In Java, where trial plantations have been established at a spacing of 1 x 3 metres, the canopy closes after 8 years[].
Natural pruning is usually good, so artificial pruning is seldom necessary[].

Edible Uses

Fruit - raw or cooked[]. Popular in some areas, though in others it is considered inferior and is mostly eaten by children[, , ]. The small, sourish-sweet fruit is cooked with soy sauce and eaten with rice, or used for flavouring curries[]. The globose drupe is green, turning yellowish when fully ripe, and about 2 - 4cm in diameter[].

The seed is edible[].

Flowers and leaves are cooked and eaten as a vegetable or used as a food flavouring[, , ].

Medicinal

The bark is used in the treatment of dysentery[]. The bark is used in traditional medicine to provoke an abortion[].

The leaves and flowers are employed in traditional medicine[].

The fruit is depurative[]. It is used in the treatment of dermatitis[]. The mature fruits are used in dentistry[]. No more details given[].

Other Uses

The heartwood is greyish, greenish-yellow to walnut brown, often with irregular dark brown to nearly black bands or fine streaks; it is more or less clearly differentiated from the up to 10cm wide band of pale yellow with pinkish or greyish tinge s sapwood. The grain is straight or interlocked, texture moderately coarse to coarse and even, lustrous, wavy grain sometimes producing a coarse fiddle-back figure. The wood is soft, moderately heavy, not very durable. It is used for veneers, furniture, plywood, boxes, matches interior trim and light frames[, ].
The tree is used for firewood[].

Propagation

Seed -
Propagation is usually by seed. Trees can also be established by direct sowing and wildings as it regenerates easily
Seed should be extracted immediately after the fleshy fruits have been collected. Pulp and seed can be separated by maceration. There are 520-620 seeds/kg. Seeds are recalcitrant and there is a 33 % germination when sown fresh and no germination at all after 6 months under ambient conditions in Java. In Malaysia, 85-95 % of fresh seeds germinate after 28-67 days

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