Manilkara hexandra

Manilkara hexandra
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Ericales
Family: Sapotaceae
Genus: Manilkara
Species:
M. hexandra
Binomial name
Manilkara hexandra
Synonyms

Mimusops hexandra Roxb. (basionym)

Fruits of Manilkara hexandra

Manilkara hexandra, the milk tree or Ceylon ironwood, is a tree species in the tribe Sapoteae, in the family Sapotaceae. It is native to China; much of the Indian subcontinent: Bangladesh, India, and Sri Lanka; Indo-China: Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.

Description

Manilkara hexandra is a slow-growing but fairly large evergreen species. It grows in tropical and temperate forests. The tree typically attains some 12 to 25 metres of height and one to three metres in trunk circumference. The bark is grayish and rough.

Uses

The wood is hard, durable, and heavy; the density is variously reported as ranging from about 0.83 to 1.08 tonnes per cubic metre, partly depending on the degree of drying. It is used for heavy structural work, gate posts, and big beams. but also is used for turning and carpentry in spite of the difficulties of working with such dense wood.

It is used as rootstock for Manilkara zapota, and its own fruit is edible.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Ann. Mus. Colon. Marseille ser. 3, 3:9, fig. 2. 1915 "Manilkara hexandra". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved December 29, 2009.
  2. ↑ Pl. Coromandel 1:16, t. 15. 1795 "Mimusops hexandra". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved December 29, 2009.
  3. ↑ "Manilkara hexandra". Catalogue of Life. Species 2000: Leiden, the Netherlands. Retrieved April 7, 2026.
  4. ↑ The Wood Database
  5. ↑ Forest Department (1962). Timber and its uses. Sri Lanka.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  6. ↑ Wood database: Workability