NAME: Calophyllum inophyllum
FAMILY: Guttiferae or Calophyllaceae
COMMON NAMES: Alexandrian laurel, Dillo oil tree,red poon
LOCAL NAMES: bintangur, Nambagura, tamanu, or kamani.
MORPHORLOGICAL DESCRIPTION Calophyllum inophyllum is an ornamental plant. It is a medium-sized and slow-growing evergreen tree with a spreading and irregular crown. It usually grows up to 8 to 20 m (26 to 66 ft) in height. All parts of the plant contain a sticky yellowish latex.
GENERAL USES:
Shipbuilding
An oil obtained from the seed is edible after being refined
The mature fruit is burned as a mosquito repellent
The stones of the fruit are used as marbles
GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION
Calophyllum inophyllum is native to Africa, South, Southeast and East Asia, Australia
WHY IS IT GREEN?
Purgative
Eye infection
migraine
astringent
ulcers
gonorrhea
boils and ophthalmia
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
The sap of the tree is poisonous
The leaves contain compounds that are poisonous to fish
FUN FACT
In Australia a fine of £10 is inflicted on any person who cuts down Alexandrian laurel.
FURTHER READINGS
Lim, T. K., & Lim, T. K. (2012). Calophyllum inophyllum. In Edible Medicinal And Non-Medicinal Plants. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-1764-0_2
Ong, H. C., Mahlia, T. M. I., Masjuki, H. H., & Norhasyima, R. S. (2011). Comparison of palm oil, Jatropha curcas and Calophyllum inophyllum for biodiesel: A review. In Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2011.05.005
Susanto, D. F., Aparamarta, H. W., Widjaja, A., & Gunawan, S. (2017). Identification of phytochemical compounds in Calophyllum inophyllum leaves. Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Biomedicine. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apjtb.2017.08.001