Dipterocarpus bourdillonii (English post)

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Karanjili

Scientific Name: Dipterocarpus bourdillonii Brandis

Synonym: 

Local Name: Karanjil , Kalpayin, Chiratta-Anjili (Malayalam)

Family: Dipterocarpaceae

Habit: Evergreen lofty tree

Habitat: 

Evergreen forests. West Cost Tropical Evergreen Forests to Subtropical broadleaved Hill Forests of Western Ghats in Karnataka and Kerala.

Ecological significance:

Endemic to Western Ghats and Critically Endagered tree species. According to the IUCN Red List, the global population is estimated to number less than 250 mature individuals, and no sub-population has over 50 individuals.

Economic Importance: 

Wood is used to make plywood and packing cases.

Identification Features 

Trunk

Tall up to 45 m with round,straight and clear bole,somethimes with buttresses at the base.  Bark grayish or orange brown or sometimes pinkish brown,that flakes off irregularly in mature trees and  densely lenticellate and with aromatic white resin. Canopy is dome shaped.

ark with laze

 

Flowering & Fruiting: 

Inflorescence / Flower

Inflorescence 3-8 flowered racemes, axillary; flowers white with pinking streak, fragrant.

The species is reported to flower between mid-November to late-December, with the fruits maturing by May.The inflorescence originates from leaf axils as clusters of 5-7 flowers arranged alternately, and they mature to produce flowers in 14–16 days. The trees remain flowering for about 14-20 days, with one flower in each inflorescence opening on alternate days, or rarely on consecutive days or the same day. The flowers begin to open at dusk around 6:45 p.m. and are fully open around 7:15 p.m, by which time, the flower has viable pollen grains and receptive stigma. While about 95% of the pollen grains become non-viable by 24 hours, the stigma remains receptive even 20 hours after flower opening

Pollination is carried out mainly by insects, chiefly two species of honey bees, Apis cerana indica and Apis dorsata, in Kerala. Of the six ovules in each fruit, only one matures into the seed, while the remaining ovules degenerate. After 60-65 days after flower opening, the maturing fruits turn brown and begin to dry on the tree itself. The mature, dry winged fruits are available on the tree about 75-80 days after flower opening. The winged fruits are wind-dispersed just before the South-west monsoon. 

Plant propagation studies indicated poor germination (<1%) from seeds sown in soil beds, low to medium survival (12% to 54%) of transplanted wildlings, and risk of attack by a stem boring insect Sahyadrassus malabaricus (Moore), a moth in the Family Hepialidae, that causes a loss of up to 60% of the planted seedlings. The seedlings attained a mean height of 72 cm (maximum 148 cm) after 2 years.

Plant propagation:      Germination is verypoor (<1%) from seeds sown in soil beds, low to medium survival (12% to 54%) of transplanted wildlings.The seedlings attained a mean height of 72 cm (maximum 148 cm) after 2 years.

Plant Protetion:  A stem boring insect Sahyadrassus malabaricus (Moore), a moth in the Family Hepialidae, that causes a loss of up to 60% of the planted seedlings  by boring the saplings and poles. 

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