Barry Conn (NSW) & Kipiro Damas (LAE).
Guide to trees of Papua New Guinea
Copyright held by the authors, National Herbarium of New South Wales, and Papua New Guinea National Herbarium

Syzygium furfuraceum Merr. & L.M.Perry

Journal of the Arnold Arboretum Vol. 23: 276 (1942)

Other Literature: Hartley & Perry, Journal of the Arnold Arboretum 207 (1973)

Family: Myrtaceae
Dicotyledon

Timber Group: Occasional timber species

Field Characters: Large canopy tree (up to c. 30 m high) or Small sub-canopy tree; Bole cylindrical (40-60 cm diam., sometimes to 100 cm); straight (bole up to 25 m long, sometimes up to 30 m); buttresses buttresses present; spines spines absent; aerial roots aerial roots absent; stilt roots stilt roots absent; Bark dark brown, rough, peeling; Subrhytidome (under-bark) pale brown; less than 25 mm thick, (4.0-) 8.0-10.0; bark blaze consisting of one layer; faintly to non-aromatic; outer blaze yellow (pale (straw-coloured), pale orange, or brown, markings absent, fibrous; inner blaze pale orange, yellow (pale (straw-coloured), or pale brown, markings absent, fibrous; bark exudate (sap) absent; terminal buds not enclosed by leaves.

Indumentum: Complex hairs absent; stinging hairs absent; mature twig indumentum (hairs) absent.

Leaves: Leaves spaced along branches, opposite (in pairs, opposite one another on the branchlet), simple (a leaf composed of a single blade); petiole present, not winged, attached to base of leaf blade, not swollen; leaves broadest at or near middle, 9.0-13.0 cm, 5.0-7.0 cm; symmetric, entire, not dissected or lobed, acuminate, venation pinnate, secondary veins closed, not prominent, but visible, intramarginal veins absent; leaves lower surface green or pale green, upper surface dark green (glossy (to sub-glossy), indumentum (hairs) absent; present; domatia absent; stipules absent.

Flowers: Inflorescence on the trunk or branches, flowers on a branched axis (inflorescence axes densely covered with reddish brown scales), cones absent; flowers bisexual, stalked, flowers with many planes of symmetry, 10.0-15.0 mm long, diameter small (up to10 mm diam.); perianth present, with distinct sepals and petals whorls, inner perianth red, pink, or pale yellow; 4, free; stamens 100, present, free of each other, free of the perianth (attached to hypanthium); ovary inferior, carpels joined (when more than one), locules 2-3; styles solitary, 1.

Fruits: Infrutescence single, fruit 12.0-15.0 mm long, 12.0-15.0 mm diam., bluish black or red, not spiny, fleshy, simple, indehiscent, drupe; seeds 1, about 10 mm long, not winged, broad (as wide as long), seed 1-10 mm diam. (7-9 mm diam.).

Distribution: Morobe, Western Highlands, Eastern Highlands, Southern Highlands, Central, Northern, Milne Bay & Papuan Islands.

Botanical records in PNGplants database Map details