Tropical Palms

FELIX FRANCIS [email protected]

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CONTENTS Interesting facts about Palms Ecological value General use Ethnobotany of Palms of Kerala Bibliography

INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT PALMS

Among the plants of the Tropics it is difficult to find a family of plants of more service to people than the palm family (Palmae, Arecaceae).

In fact, this family has been called the most versatile of all due to its many uses.

Records Involving Palms Most versatile plant family in total uses: Most versatile plant family in food uses:

Palmae Palmae

World’s longest woody vines:

Rattan palms, Calamus, Daemonorhops, Desmoncus, and others

World’s longest leaves:

Raffia palms, Raphia, upto 65 ft!

World’s longest inflorescence:

Talipot palm, Corypha umbraculifera

World’s largest seed:

Double coconut, Lodoicea maldivica

World’s hardest seed:

Ivory nut palm, Phytelephas sp

World’s single best starch source:

Sago palm, Metroxylon sp

A narcotic seed that is chewed:

Betel nut palm, Areca catechu

Ethnobotany of Palms of Kerala

Wild Palms

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Aernga wightii Griff. •Monoecious solitary palm. 10m height and 30 cm diameter tree. •Stem densely clothed with fibrous remains of leaf sheaths conspicuous by their fibrous outergrowths form margins. •Leaves 4-7 m long. •Inflorescence interfoliar and are produced basipetally from the axils of leaves. In evergreen forests at 3001000m elevation. Requires good moisture.

Aernga wightii Griff.

Typical habitat

Aernga wightii Griff. Starts flowering 8-10 years and dies after producing a series of inflorescences. Use is limited to hilly forest areas where it commonly grows. Hill tribes of Wayanad, Nelliyampathy, Attapady, Sholayar etc. use it for toddy (local consumption). Leaves for thatching. Leaves and inflorescence for religious ceremonies. Leaves are used to treat insect bites.

Aernga wightii Griff.

Inflorescence

Aernga wightii Griff.

Seedling

Aernga wightii Griff. Dried kernel and cabbage are edible. Starch from trunk has medicinal properties( for treating body aches).

Bentickia condapanna Berry. Solitary, slender stemmed, unarmed palm. 10m height, 15 cm diameter. Flowers arranged in triads, with one central female and two outer males. Fruit globose-ovoid, bright chocolate coloured. Occurs in evergreen forests at 1000-1400m elevations.

Bentickia condapanna

The palm is highly restricted in distribution and is not much known for its utility. The terminal bud is edible. The hill tribes use the inflorescence in religious ceremonies.

Bentickia condapanna

Typical habitat

Bentickia condapanna

Aerial View

Bentickia condapanna

Stem and leaf sheathes.

Bentickia condapanna

Leaves are used to ward off evil spirits, during religious ceremonies

Bentickia condapanna

The palm is highly restricted in distribution and is not much known for its utility. The terminal bud is edible. The hill tribes use the inflorescence in religious ceremonies.

Borassus flabellifer Linn. Solitary, robust palm. Male and female plants separate. 10-30 m height and 60 cm diameter, deep grey or black stem. Male inflorescence stout cylindrical branches, while female inflorescence is sparingly branched. Fruit semiglobose.

Borassus flabellifer Occurs in semi-wild conditions in Palakkad and Malappuram. Culktivated in other districts. Common in India, Myanmar and Srilanka. Flowering- March-April; Fruiting- July- September. One of the most economic palms of India.

Leaves for writing manuscripts. Toddy (female palms yield 33-50% more toddy than male). Palm candy and jaggery, rich in carbohydrates, minerals , vitamin B.

Borassus flabellifer

Edible soft jelly like endosperm from fruits. Also the tender apical bud (cabbage) Fibre for broom and brush making.

This palm is associated with lord Buddha and is used in Buddhist rituals.

Leaves stalk fibre for pulp. Leaves used for making a variety of fancy and utility items and for tatching.

Calamus brandisii Becc. A cluster forming slender rattan. Stem of diameter 1.5 cm. Leaves 1 m long with green leaf sheaths. Male and female inflorescence long and slender. Fruit ovate.

Calamus brandisii

Evergreen forests between 1000-1500m elevation( Agasthyamala in Kerala, Kothayar, Kalakkadu in T.N.) Flowers in October – December. Fruiting – March – May Excellent small diameter cane, extensively used in furniture industry. Tribes of Agasthyamala use the thorny stems for preparing animal traps.

Calamus travancoricus Bedd. A cluster forming slender rattan. Stem of diameter 1.5 cm. Leaves 45 cm long with green leaf sheaths. Male and female inflorescence 1m long and slender. Fruit globose and 1cm across.

Calamus travancoricus

Evergreen forests between 200-500m elevation( Thenmala, Ranni, Konni, Chalakkudy, Nilambur) Flowers in October – November. Fruiting –May- June. Excellent small diameter cane, extensively used in handicraft and furniture industry. The fruit is used in religious ceremonies by tribes in southern Kerala.

Caryota urens Linn. A solitary monoecious palm. Stem of diameter 60 cm and height 16-20m. Leaves 4m long with leaf sheath eroding. Starts flowering after nearly 15 years. Fruit globose and 2cm across and its fleshy part contains irritant needle like crystals.

Caryota urens

Evergreen forests between 50-1000m elevation( Throughout Western Ghats) Also in Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sri lanka and Malaysia. Flowers after 8- 10 years. Fruiting –May- June. Used for toddy tapping. Fibre is suitable for making brushes and strong cordage. Leaves and fodder for elephants, making pandals. Trunk is used for construction purposes in rural areas.

Pinanga dicksonii (Roxb.) Bl. A slender stemmed pleonanthic palm. Stem of diameter 3-12 cm and height 6m. Leaves 1.7m long and numerous, light green in colour, uppermost leaflets joined. Starts flowering after nearly 15 years. Fruit globose and 2cm across and its fleshy part contains irritant needle like crystals.

Pinanga dicksonii

Evergreen forests between 350-1000m elevation( Throughout Western Ghats) Flowers :August- September. Fruiting :February- March. Stem used as walking sticks and for making fencing.

Pinanga dicksonii

Pinanga dicksonii

Nut chewed by tribals as a substitute for betel nuts.

Cultivated Palms

Coconut

Cocos nucifera, is without a doubt the best palm of the world based on its products and its uses for people. While associated with the seashore and thus with lands near sea level, the coconut can be found in large inland plantations in some countries, and is frequently seen as well in the foothills of the mountains.

Part of the Palm Used

Uses/Functions

Entire palm

Shade for other crops

High

Light shade for pastures

Very high

Beauty in landscapes and gardens

Very high

Timbers for construction

Medium

Sawed planks for construction

Low

Extraction of starch

Low

Veneers & carving

Medium

Extracted for medicines

Low

Toasted, ground as coffee substitute.

Low

Carved as tooth picks

Low

Terminal bud

Removed as palm cabbage, thus killing the palm

Low

Petiole of leaf

Used as a timber in construction

Very high

A pole for many applications

High

Used as fuel

Medium

Trunk

Roots

Relative Importance

Part of the Palm Used

Uses/Functions

Blade of leaf

Thatching

High

Fencing

High

Weaving

Very high

In bundles as torches

Low

Tapped as a source of sap, used for drink, toddy, vinegar, sugar, arrack

High

Source of yeast for bread

Medium

Used as a source of drink

High

Uses as a source of edible "jelly"

Medium

Mature fruit

Food

High

Husk

Processed as coir fiber

High

Coir used as rooting medium

Medium

Uses as fuel

Medium

Used to make utensils and ornaments

High

Used to make charcoal

Low

Inflorescence

Immature fruit

Shell

Relative Importance

Part of the Palm Used

Uses/Functions

Relative Importance

Pulp of nut

Used as a fresh food

Medium

Grated and extracted as "milk"

High

Dried and used as condiment

Medium

Used as animal feed

High

Used in foods, margarine

Very high

In soaps, cosmetics, illuminants

High

As hair oil and oil for the body

Very high

Residue after extraction

As an animal feed

High

Liquid

As a beverage

Medium

Used in cooking

High

Cooked as a vegetable

Medium

Extracted oil

Germinating nut

Uses of the Coconut The liquid of the immature nut is a refreshing drink, but the liquid of the mature nut, while of good taste, is more likely to loosen the bowels. The liquid of the nut is not the same as the "milk". This name refers to the juice extracted from the grated kernel, by pressing or wringing in a cloth, with or without first adding some water. Rich in oil, the liquid is white and milky in appearance, and of high nutritive value (oil, carbohydrates, protein). It is mixed into many kinds of food.

An important Agroforestry component of the tropics.

Uses of the Coconut The mature kernel is not used at the household level as frequently as the "milk", yet has its major use in the production of copra, dried coconut kernel, pressed for the extraction of oil which has many uses as food (cooking oil, condiments, pastries, margarine) as well as personal uses (hair and anointments), and a very wide variety of industrial uses.

Uses of the Coconut for Food The residue after extraction of oil is a fibrous cake rich also in protein, which is used as an animal feed. While the terminal bud or cabbage is highly prized as a food, and while the trunks can be used for the manufacture of starch (sago), these uses are destructive and are practiced only in emergency or when old palms are destroyed by storm or are removed.

Etnobotanical uses of the Coconut

The sap of the inflorescence is highly prized for its many uses. The sap can be used fresh as a beverage, but more often it is permitted to ferment naturally, providing an alcoholic toddy. Still later fermentation leads to the production of vinegar. The best arrack, the distilled spirits of toddy, comes from the coconut palm. The brown sugar, jaggery, obtained by boiling the sap, is a familiar and useful food item in many parts of the world. Even the germinating nut has its uses. The ball of roots within the nut (haustorium) is prized as a cooked vegetable. Worshipped as Saraswati, Goddess of learning.

GENERAL USE: The tapping of the inflorescence or the apex of the palm yields sap, which can be made into a fresh drink, or fermented into toddy, or then distilled into arrack.

The tender tip of many palms eaten raw or cooked, at the base of the leaf (harvest destroys the whole trunk) & is frequently called millionaire's salad. Fibre is used for making fishing nets and fishing vessels.

Arecanut

Areca catechu, a solitary pleonanthic palm. Origin : Tropical Asia Flowering and fruiting : Round the year.

The hard seed is largely chewed as mastigatory along with betel leaves.

Mature stem are used for making pillars and roof beams of thatched huts.

eaf sheaths are used as containers or drawing water form the well.

The soft downy substance from the lower surface of the leaves Is used as stypic.

The astringent roots are used for curing dysentry and other ailments.

Display of the items usually included in a chewing session. The pouch on the lower right contains tobacco, a relatively recent introduction.

Oil Palm

Elaeis guineensis, a solitary robust palm. Origin : West and Central America Flowering and fruiting : March-June and December - February

The species is cultivated for extracting the palm oil.

The species is cultivated for extracting the palm oil.

www.indiamedicinal.com visited on November 5, 2009.

www.ethnobot.purdueuniv.edu visited on November 7, 2009.

Sood, S.K., Thakur Vandana, 2001. Magicoreligious plants of India. Scientific publishers, Jodhpur. 13(2): 93-100 Trivedi, P.C., Jain, N.K., 1996. Ethnomedicinal plants. Pointer publishers, New Delhi, pp 167-201. Jain, S.K., 1991. Contribution to Indian Ethnobotany. Scientific publishers, Jaipur. Pp 23-31.

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