Statue of Unity – Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat Rain Forest Ektanagar

Calophyllum inophyllum

Syn. Balsamaria inophyllum

IUCN Red List Least Concern (LC)

Local name

  • Ball Tree (English)
  • Sultan Champa (Hindi)

Tree type

Evergreen Deciduous
Family: Calophyllaceae
20m

Indicated uses

Medicinal Edible Ornamental Avenue Other

Flowering & fruiting

Flowering Fruiting

Key characters

Calophyllum inophyllum bark

Bark

Grey to dark brown, thick, rough and fissured with age. Inner bark yellowish.

Calophyllum inophyllum leaves

Leaves

The tree supports a dense canopy of glossy, elliptical leaves.

Calophyllum inophyllum flower

Flower

The very fragrant white flowers are 25 mm across and occur in racemose or paniculate inflorescences consisting of 4 to 15 flowers.

Calophyllum inophyllum fruit / seeds

Fruit / Seeds

The fruit is a round, green drupe reaching 2 to 4 cm in diameter and having a single large seed. When ripe, the fruit is wrinkled and its color varies from yellow to brownish-red.

Calophyllum inophyllum

Did you know?

The Greek word Calophyllum translates to “beautiful leaf”, honoring the striking, glossy foliage shared across the group. The flowers are highly fragrant and attract numerous pollinators, particularly bees.

Distribution

World map showing distribution

Kenya to Mozambique, West Indian Ocean, Tropical & Subtropical Asia to Pacific.