Diospyros hebecarpa

Description

A small tree. It grows 7-10 m high and spreads 3-6 m wide. The wood is soft and yellow. The tree has a dark compact crown. The branches are slender and greyish-green. The young shoots have short hairs. The leaves hang in a lax fashion on the tree. The leaves are simple, entire and alternate. They are oval and the tip comes to a point while the base is tapered. The leaves are dark green and dull above but lighter and more shiny underneath. The leaves are 5-9 cm long by 2-3 cm wide. The male and female flowers are separate. The fruit are 1.5-2.5 cm across and round. They are covered with short hairs. The seeds are flattened and there are about 8 seeds in a fruit.

Edible Uses

Fruit - raw. The fruit are 15 - 25mm in diameter in one report, 30 - 40mm in another, and up to 120mm in a third. They are covered with short hairs. The seeds are flattened and there are about 8 seeds in a fruit.

Distribution

A tropical plant. It grows naturally in mixed secondary forest. It grows up to 1,700 m above sea level.

Where It Grows

Asia, Australia*, Indonesia, Malesia, Pacific, Papua New Guinea, PNG, Philippines, SE Asia, Solomon Islands,

Cultivation

Plants are grown from seed which must be sown fresh.

Propagation

Seed - it has a very short viability and so should be sown as soon as possible. The flesh should be removed since this contains germination inhibitors. Sow the seed in a shady position in a nursery seedbed. The sowing media for ebony uses soil and fine sand at the ratio 3:1. The seed is planted horizontally or vertically with the radicle end down, with a sowing depth of 1 - 1½ times the thickness of seed. Distance between the seeds is 3 - 5cm. Seeds are very sensitive to desiccation during germination and early growth, so must be regularly watered at this time. Normally the seed will germinate after one week. As a rule fresh seeds have a high percentage of fertility. The seedlings develop long taproots at an early stage, often before any appreciable elongation of the shoot takes place. The growth of the seedling is decidedly slow .

Other Uses

The heartwood is jet black, but small and often defective; it is clearly demarcated from the sapwood, which is almost white, turning yellowish in seasoning, but often staining, either evenly or in streaks and mottlings, to light gray. We do not have any more specific information for this species. However, though varying widely in the relative proportion and the colouring of sapwood and heartwood, all the woods of the genus Diospyros are practically indistinguishable as regards their structure, as described below:- Whether or not a given species produces heartwood depends largely on the size the tree has attained, but evidently also on other conditions, as there is a wide variation in the relative amounts of sapwood and heartwood even in individuals of the same species. When produced, the heartwood can be black with rosy, yellowish, brownish, or ashy streaks, sometimes it is nearly or totally black; it is generally sharply demarcated from the thin to very wide band of whitish, yellowish, or red sapwood. The texture is fine, smooth and (especially in the heartwood) very dense; the grain is generally very straight. The wood is hard to very hard; heavy to very heavy; the sapwood is tough and flexible whilst the heartwood is brittle; the heartwood is very durable, the sapwood moderately so. It is difficult to season well, logs almost invariably checking in several directions from the heart outward, while sawn lumber must be stacked carefully and weighted to prevent warping; once thoroughly dried, however, it becomes very stable. Its density makes it difficult to work, but it takes a beautiful surface under sharp tools. Small trees containing little or no heartwood are used locally for posts, beams, joists, rafters, window sills, parts of agricultural implements, etc.; also, in lumbering, small poles are used for skids on account of their hardness, toughness and smooth wearing qualities. The heartwood (or sometimes sap and heart together) is used for scabbards, canes, hilts, tool handles, gunstocks, saw frames, etc.; it is a favorite for musical instruments, especially finger boards and keys of guitars; furniture, cabinetwork, inlaying; paper weights, inkstands and similar desk supplies; the sapwood, which is almost as hard as the heartwood and very much tougher, is an excellent material for T-squares and other drawing instruments, for shuttles, bobbins, spindles, golf-club heads and shafts, axe, pick, and hammer handles, etc.

Production

It is slow growing especially when young. It needs well drained acid soil. It probably does best with light shade. In Australia flowering is in October.

Notes

The fruit have been used to stun fish. There are about 485 species of Diospyros mostly in the tropics.

Nutrition

Synonyms

References (11)

• Borrell, O.W., 1989, An Annotated Checklist of the Flora of Kairiru Island, New Guinea. Marcellin College, Victoria Australia. p 69, 185
• Cooper W & Cooper W T, 1994, Fruits of the Rain Forest. RD Press p 92
• Cooper, W. and Cooper, W., 2004, Fruits of the Australian Tropical Rainforest. Nokomis Editions, Victoria, Australia. p 155
• Elliot, W.R., & Jones, D.L., 1984, Encyclopedia of Australian Plants suitable for cultivation. Vol 3. Lothian. p 284
• Jackes, B.R., 2001, Plants of the Tropics. Rainforest to Heath. An Identification Guide. James Cook University. p 50

More from Ebenaceae

Diospyros peekelii

Aipa

Diospyros pendula

Diospyros pubescens

South African star apple, South African persimmon

Diospyros pyrrhocarpa

Anang

Diospyros racemosa

Diospyros ramiflora