MALAYSIA RE-VISITED
Thanks again to David Chandlee for some of the following notes on Alan Carle's talk and slide display.
Chempedak - similar to the Jak fruit but stronger smelling (according to Burkill, the flesh of the chempedak is softer).
Garcinia mangostana - the purple mangosteen. Orchards are reducing as old ones near towns become building lots, and there are few new plantings because of their slow maturity (10 to 20 years).
Garcinia prainiana or chepu - not cultivated and found only in jungle.
Pulasan - a member of the rambutan family and often preferred to it.
Durian - Durio zibethinus. A Thai variety is the most popular in S.E. Asia. One person planting 500 acres of durian interplanted with citrus. Demand for the fruit is far ahead of supply.
Rambai - Baccaurea motleyana. A fairly common tree fruit hanging in racemes from twigs and branches, fruit 2-4 cms. Varies sweet or sour from tree to tree - a relative B. wrayi or tampoi is redder.
Langsat and Duku - Lansium domesticum. Somewhat similar trees, langsat being smaller fruit with a thinner skin. Very slow to bear (15 years from seed), crops twice yearly.
Mangifera - many species but only a few are edible. Some used for cooking only.
Petah - Parkia speciosa. A leguminous tree with an edible seed, somewhat rare.
Ficus species - large fruit of good flavour.
Annona squamosa - the purple sugar apple, claimed by Alan to be the best of the Annona family.
Nutmeg - Myristica fragrans. Once the major crop of Malaysia and virtually wiped out by sudden disease some 120 years ago.
Brazil nut - Bertholletia excelsa. Now fruiting eight years from seed. A very large tree with beautiful flowers.
Palmyra Palm - Borassis flabellifera. The leaves were used in the 5th and 6th century as a writing material - now grown for toddy, an alcoholic drink when fermented.
DATE: January 1981
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