Common Name: Red Balan

General Information

Red balan is a large tree with a dense crown; it can grow up to 73 metres tall. The straight, cylindrical bole can be free of branches for 15 - 25 metres, up to 112cm in diameter, with prominent buttresses[, ].
The tree is harvested from the wild for its resin and for its wood, which is a high class construction timber that is used locally and also traded.
The tree is classified as 'Critically endangered' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2010)[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

Southeast Asia - Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines.

Habitat

An emergent tree, scattered in lowland forest on red soils, most common in slightly seasonal climates; rare and confined to limestone hills in W. and Central Borneo[, ].

Properties

Conservation Status	Critically Endangered
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Tree
Height	55.00 m
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of lowland areas in the moist tropics, where it is found at elevations up to 400 metres[, ].
Usually found wild on ridges with sandy soils, quite often on limestone as well[].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

None known

Other Uses

A dammar resin, known as 'huille de bios' is obtained from the tree[]. It is used for making varnishes and paints[, ].
Dammar is a hard resin, obtained from various trees of Southeast Asia. Traditionally, it is used for purposes such as caulking boats and baskets, as an adhesive, a medicine, as a fuel for torches and sometimes in foods. Dammar has many commercial applications, though many of these uses are less important nowadays due to the advent of synthetic materials. Commercially, it is an ingredient of inks, lacquers, oil paints, varnishes etc, and is used as a glazing agent in foods[].
Harvesting of the resin commences when the bole is around 25cm in diameter (approx 20 years old). Triangular cuts (becoming circular with age) are arranged in vertical rows around the trunk. The cuts are several centimetres wide at first, but become enlarged at every tapping and eventually become holes of 15 - 20cm in depth and width. The average number of holes for a tree about 30 metres tall and 60 - 80cm in diameter is 9 - 11 in each of 4 - 5 vertical rows. For the higher holes, the tapper climbs the tree supported by a rattan belt and using the lower holes as footholds.
The exuded resin is allowed to dry on the tree before it is collected. The frequency with which the tree is visited to refreshen the cut varies from once a week to once a month, depending on how far the tree is from the village. Tapping can continue for 30 years[].

The heartwood is light to dark red-brown, or purplish red-brown to grey-brown; it is clearly demarcated from the 3 - 8cm wide band of light gray sapwood. The texture is fine to medium; the grain interlocked. The wood is heavy, hard, moderately durable, being resistant to dry wood borers and moderately resistant to fungi and termites. The wood seasons slowly with a high risk of distortion and checking; once dry it is moderately stable in service. It has a fairly high blunting effect upon tools, power-driven stellite-tipped and tungsten carbite tools are recommended; nailing and screwing are good, but pre-boring is necessary to avoid splitting; gluing is correct for interior purposes[]. The wood has a variety of uses, it is considered valuable for light construction and is used for flooring, exterior joinery, musical instruments, boxes and crates etc[, , ].

Propagation

We have no specific information for this species - the information below is a general guide for the genus.

Seed - best sown as soon as possible. It does not require pre-treatment, but it is recommended to soak the seed for 12 hours prior to sowing[]. The seeds are sown in seedbeds, where they are covered with a mixture of sand and soil (1:1) or with a thin layer of sawdust[]. Germination of fresh seeds is usually good and rapid. About two weeks after germination, when the seedlings are 5 - 6cm tall, they are potted up into individual containers about 15 x 23cm with good drainage holes at their base[]. It is normally recommended to use a mixture of forest soil and sand (at a ratio of 3:1) as the potting medium in order to introduce the appropriate mycorrhiza to the roots. The seedlings are placed in
50 - 60% sunlight and watered twice daily[].
Seedlings can be planted out when 30 - 40cm tall - harden the seedlings off in full sunlight for one month prior to planting[].

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