Calamus castaneus

From Palmpedia - Palm Grower's Guide
Jump to: navigation, search
Calamus (KAL-ah-muhs)
castaneus (cahs-tahn-EH-uhs)
Cc2788864.jpg
Perak, Malaysia. Photo by Dr. John Dransfield, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew/Palmweb.
Scientific Classification
Genus: Calamus (KAL-ah-muhs)
Species:
castaneus (cahs-tahn-EH-uhs)
Synonyms
Calamus castaneus var. Griffithianus
Native Continent
Asia
Asia.gif
Morphology
Habit: Clustering
Leaf type: Pinnate
Culture
Survivability index
Common names
'Cucor' palm

Habitat and Distribution

Malaya, Kedah, Kelantan, Penang, Perak, Trengganu, Pahang, Selangor, Negri Sembilan, Malacca, Johore. South Thailand, North Sumatra.

Inflorescences in Calamus castaneus in Peninsular Malaysia. Image-Dr's. NADINE RUPPERT, ASYRAF MANSOR AND SHAHRUL ANUAR MOHD SAH, Malaysia.

Description

Clustering undergrowth acaulescent palm showing no tendency to climb. Stem decumbent, or erect, or subterranean, rarely more than 1.5 m tall, by up to 8 cm in diameter without sheaths, with very crowded nodes. Noflagellum; no cirrus. Leaves up to about 4 m long with petiole up to 1.5 m or more. Sheath and petiole dull green armed with flattened grey, yellow-based spines, and grey-brown indumentum; spines arranged in groups, very variable in length from 2 mm to 60 mm; ligule present around leaf sheath mouth, armed with small spines. Leaflets about 30-40 on each side of the rachis, to 50 cm long by 3 cm wide, regular, rather distant dark shiny green above, dull dirty grey indumentose below, armed with scattered black bristles on lower 3 nerves, on margins and sometimes on upper surface. Inflorescences borne low on the leaf sheath the origin obscured by the leaf sheath, up to about 45 cm. Female inflorescence with up to about 15 rather stiff crowded rachillae covered with dense bracts, in fruit elongating. Flowers with pinkish to crimson bracts and petals in bud, becoming pale at flower opening. Male inflorescence more highly branched, laxer and sinuose. Ripe fruit to 25 mm long by to 18 mm wide, oblong, with pronounced beak, rich chestnut brown in colour covered in 18-27 vertical rows of scales. Endosperm homogeneous. Seedling leaf with 6 leaflets, dark green above, grey indumentose below. (J. Dransfield, A Manual of the rattans of the Malay Peninsula. Malayan Forest Records 29.. 1979)/Palmweb. Editing by edric.

Culture

Cold Hardiness Zone: 10a

Comments and Curiosities

Etymology: Castaneus - chestnut-coloured, referring to the fruit colour of the 'Cucor' palm.

Uses: Cane too short to be used. Immature fruit used as cough medicine by "Orang Temuan". (J. Dransfield, A Manual of the rattans of the Malay Peninsula. Malayan Forest Records 29.. 1979)/Palmweb.



External Links

References

Phonetic spelling of Latin names by edric.

Special thanks to Geoff Stein, (Palmbob) for his hundreds of photos.

Special thanks to Palmweb.org, Dr. John Dransfield, Dr. Bill Baker & team, for their volumes of information and photos.

Glossary of Palm Terms; Based on the glossary in Dransfield, J., N.W. Uhl, C.B. Asmussen-Lange, W.J. Baker, M.M. Harley & C.E. Lewis. 2008. Genera Palmarum - Evolution and Classification of the Palms. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. All images copyright of the artists and photographers (see images for credits).

J. Dransfield, A Manual of the rattans of the Malay Peninsula. Malayan Forest Records 29.. 1979


Many Special Thanks to Ed Vaile for his long hours of tireless editing and numerous contributions.

Banner1B
Back to Palm Encyclopedia


Retrieved from "https://palmpedia.net/wiki/index.php5?title=Calamus_castaneus&oldid=109551"