Common Name:

General Information

Scaphium scaphigerum is an evergreen tree growing up to 45 metres tall. The straight, cylindrical bole can be up to 150cm in diameter, with buttresses up to 7 metres high[, ].
The seeds are commonly harvested from the wild to make a drink that is very popular in China and Thailand, and also for medicinal purposes. The wood is a source of 'kembang semangkok' timber and is harvested from the wild for local use and for trade.

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

E. Asia - Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos.

Habitat

Evergreen lowland forest at elevations from 80 - 700 metres[, ].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Tree
Height	30.00 m
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of the moist tropics where it can be found at elevations up to 700 metres. It grows in areas with a pronounced dry season[].

Edible Uses

The seed, when soaked in water, produces a gelatinous mass. Although virtually tasteless, it is used to make a popular drink in Thailand and China, usually with the addition of sugar and soaked basil seeds[]. The seeds are 18 - 35mm long, surrounded by a thin pericarp about 2mm wide - this is the part that swells and increases enormously in size when soaked in water[].

Medicinal

A drink made with the mucilage from the soaked seed is demulcent, febrifuge and stomachic[, , ]. It is said to be effective in a wide range of diseases, particularly for treating diarrhoea and dysentery, probably working by coating the affected area in a soothing, healing mucilage and thus giving it an opportunity to recover[].
The main component in the mucilage is bassorin[].

Other Uses

The wood is a source of 'kembang semangkok' timber. We have no specific information on the wood of this species, but the following is a general description of kembang semangkok wood:-
The heartwood is light yellow to light brown, with a large silver figure; it is not demarcated from the sapwood. The texture is medium; the grain straight or shallowly interlocked. The wood is moderately heavy; moderately hard; somewhat resistant to fungi but susceptible to dry wood borers. It seasons fairly rapidly, with very little risk of checking and distortion; once dry it is moderately stable to stable in service. It has a high blunting effect, so stellite-tipped and tungsten carbide tools are recommended; nailing and screwing are good; gluing is correct. The wood is used in construction, for joinery and panelling, furniture components, boxes and crates, flooring, matches, plywood, veneer etc[, , , ].

Propagation

Seed -

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