DILLENIA FAMILY (DILLENIACEAE) 



159. Dilenia, India dillenia 



A showy exotic introduced in gardens as an 

 ornamental shade tree, distinguished by: (1) the 

 symmetrical, usually conical dense crown; (2) 

 large oblong or oblanceolate shiny green leaves 

 with saw-toothed edges and with many straight 

 parallel lateral veins V4-% inch apart leaving mid- 

 rib at an angle of about 45 degrees and each ending 

 in a tooth; (3) beautiful very large white flowers, 

 with yellow stamens, 8-9 inches across the 5 petals ; 

 and (4) large, hard, light green fruits 5-8 inches 

 in diameter, resembling a cabbage head, covered by 

 very thick sepals. 



An evergreen tree attaining 50 feet in height 

 with straight trunk to 1 foot in diameter, with 

 large spreading branches arising a few together 

 along the trunk. The brown bark is smoothish, 

 with faint horizontal ring scars, and becoming 

 slightly scaly. Inner bark is pinkish brown and 

 bitter. The stout brownish-gray twigs have many 

 broad leaf scars and at apex bear crowded alter- 

 nate leaves and have pointed buds V^ inch long, 

 covered with pointed gray silky hairy scales. 



The leaves have stout, light green, grooved 

 petioles li/4-l% inches long. Blades are 6-15 

 inches long and 214-6 inches wide, abruptly long- 

 pointed at apex and narrowed toward the short- 

 pointed base, often broadest above middle, above 

 shiny green with midrib and lateral veins slightly 

 sunken, and beneath lighter green with prominent 

 lateral veins which are inconspicuously hairy. 



Flowers are borne singly near end of twig on a 

 long stout stalk. There are 5 spreading light green 

 sepals, concave and fleshy; 5 spreading obovate 

 white petals about 4 inches long; very numerous 

 curved bright yellow stamens in a globelike mass; 

 and a central ring of about 16-18 crowded but 



Dillenia indica L.* 



nearly separate pistils (carpels), each 1-celled and 

 bearing a white slender spreading stigma % ii^ch 

 long, narrow, flat, and pointed, the stigmas spread- 

 ing as rays in a circle. 



The heavy fiiiits hang down singly, only 1 at 

 the end of a leafy twig. They are rounded but 

 broader than long and slightly irregular, being 

 shaped by the 5 rounded hard sepals which are 

 more than 1 inch thick at base with whitish flesh, 

 the outer 2 short and the inner 3 tightly overlap- 

 ping. The sepals do not open but enclose tightly 

 the aggregate fruit of crowded light brown ovaries 

 about 3 inches across, each with thick soft sour 

 walls and containing several light brown flattened 

 seeds i^ inch long in transparent gelatinous flesh. 

 Observed in flower in July and August and with 

 fruits nearly through the year. 



The light brown sap wood is slightly soft. The 

 wood is not used in Puerto Rico. 



In India the fruit is eaten, the entire fruit being 

 made into jelly or a drink or sometimes cooked as 

 a vegetable. The bulk consists of the very thick 

 sepals, which have a very sour taste. The smaller 

 juicy fruits inside are sour also. 



Planted in Puerto Rico as an ornamental and 

 shade tree and experimentally in St. Thomas. 

 Elsewhere in the tropics examples may be seen in 

 botanical gardens. 



Range. — Native of tropical Asia from India to 

 Malaya. Introduced into other tropical regions, 

 sparingly in the New World, including southern 

 Florida and southern California, Greater Antilles, 

 and Central and South America. 



Other common names. — coca (Dominican Re- 

 public) ; India dillenia, dillenia (United States). 



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