Bark
Smooth, greyish-brown to dark brown bark that secretes a profuse, blood-red fluid or sap immediately when cut. Younger twigs are covered in fine, rusty-velvety hairs.
Knema andamanica
Syn. Knema cinerea var. andamanica
IUCN Red List
Least Concern
(LC)
Tree type
Evergreen
Deciduous
Family: Myristicaceae
12m
Indicated uses
Medicinal
Edible
Ornamental
Avenue
Other
Flowering & fruiting
Flowering
Fruiting
Key characters
Leaves
Leathery, oblong to lanceolate leaves (8–30 cm long) that dry to a greenish-brown on top while remaining distinctly glaucous (whitish-blue grey) underneath.
Flower
Small, pink to yellowish flowers clustered in short, axillary bundles, covered in a dense layer of fuzzy, rusty-brown woolly hairs (tomentose)
Fruit / Seeds
Ellipsoid, egg-shaped fruits covered in brownish velvet, splitting open when mature to reveal a single seed wrapped in a brilliant scarlet-red, fleshy network (aril)
Did you know?
When its bark is cut, it releases a dark red resinous sap. In traditional medicine, the dried exudate is used to treat dysentery and soothe painful mouth sores.
Distribution
Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Sumatera, Thailand.