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Nomenclature etc. DILLENIACEAE. Important species: Dillenia excelsa, D. grandifolia, D. indica, D. philippinensis, D. papuana, D. pentagyna, D. pulchella, D. reticulata, D. salomonensis, D. schlechteri. Trade and local names: simpor (MY); sempur (ID); katmon (PH); zinbyum, mai-masan (MM); san (KH); san, masan (TH); elephant apple (GB); karambel (IN); fruta-estrela, dilênia (PT);. Not protected under CITES regulations.
Tree. Geographic distribution: India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Indomalesia.
General. Heartwood basically brown to red, purple. Sapwood colour distinct from heartwood colour. Density 0.54–0.88 g/cm³.
Vessels. Vessels present. Wood diffuse porous. Vessels exclusively solitary. Vessel outline rounded, or angular. Average tangential vessel diameter 110–240 µm. Average number of vessels/mm² 3–9. Perforation plates scalariform, with 5–40 bars. Intervessel pits scalariform or opposite, average diameter (vertical) 9–11 µm. Intervessel pits rare, mostly restricted to overlapping vessel tips. Vessel-ray pits with reduced borders or apparently simple, different from intervessel pits, horizontal to vertical. Tyloses present (rare), thinwalled.
Tracheids and fibres. Fibres of medium wall thickness to very thick-walled. Average fibre length 1700–3700 µm. Fibre pits common in both radial and tangential walls, distinctly bordered.
Axial parenchyma. Axial parenchyma apotracheal. Apotracheal axial parenchyma diffuse. Axial parenchyma as strands. Average number of cells per strand: 4–8.
Rays. Rays 2–4 per tangential mm, multiseriate, (1–)3–15(–20) cells wide. Rays of two distinct sizes. Height of large rays commonly over 1000 µm. Rays composed of two or more cell types (heterocellular). Heterocellular rays with square and upright cells restricted to marginal rows, mostly 2–4 marginal rows of upright or square cells to with more than 4 marginal rows of upright or square cells. Disjunctive ray parenchyma end walls distinct. Uniseriate rays composed exclusively of upright cells.
Secretory structures. Intercellular canals absent.
Mineral inclusions. Crystals present, raphides, located in ray cells or axial parenchyma cells. Crystal-containing ray cells upright and/or square or procumbent. Crystal-containing axial parenchyma cells not chambered. Number of crystals per cell or chamber more than one. Crystal containing cells enlarged (idioblasts). Silica present, as vitreous silica; in fibres.
Illustrations. • Transverse section. Dillenia fagifolia. • Tangential section. Dillenia fagifolia. • Radial section. Dillenia fagifolia. • Crystals (raphides). raphides in axial parenchyma (Ap) and ray cells (R). Ap. R. • Vitreous silica. vitreous silica in fibre lumina.
The interactive key allows access to the character list, illustrations, full and partial descriptions, diagnostic descriptions, differences and similarities between taxa, lists of taxa exhibiting specified attributes, summaries of attributes within groups of taxa, and geographical distribution.
Cite this publication as: ‘Richter, H.G., and Dallwitz, M.J. 2000 onwards. Commercial timbers: descriptions, illustrations, identification, and information retrieval. In English, French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish. Version: 9th April 2019. delta-intkey.com’.
