Bruguiera cylindrica Blume

A tree up to 23 m high. The trunk is 30 cm across. It is much smaller and like a shrub when in poor soil. It has stilt roots and aerial roots. The bark is grey to dark brown and cracked along and across its length. The leaves are oval but tapering towards both ends. They are 5-17 cm long and 2-8 cm wide. The leaves are thick. They are dark green on top and lighter green below. The midrib is sunken on the top of the leaf and raised below. The leaf stalk is 1-3 cm long. The flowers are cream coloured and borne as 3 flowered clusters on equal length stalks. Flowers are 3 cm long. The flower stalk is 1-4 mm long. There are 8 white petals with lobes. The fruit and hypocotyl are green. The hypocotyl or stem below the seed leaves is 4-15 cm long and 5 mm wide and may be curved. The outer part of the flower is fringed with white hairs. The hypocotyl is green when young and brownish when old. The seed germinates before the fruit falls from the tree.

Generally not higher than 20 m, essentially gregarious on stiff clay behind Avicennia on the seaface; it gives way to other species on better drained soils, existing gregariously by virtue of its ability to grow in newly formed soils unsuitable to other mangroves.The almost entire absence of aeration in the dense clay habitually occupied by B. cylindrica makes the tree more than usually dependent on its pneumatophores for an adequate supply of oxygen, and particularly susceptible to prolonged submersion. Suffocation on a much more extensive scale has occurred in the centre of Trong Island, in the Matang For. Res., Perak, where its progressive dying off over an area that had grown to over 40 ha has recently been checked by the cutting of an extraction canal, which has allowed the accumulated surface water to drain away towards the landward side.There is good reason to believe that B. cylindrica is a legitimate precursor of the Rhizophoras in most situations where accretion is proceeding on the sea-face. It is a prolific seed-bearer and healthy forests can be relied upon to regenerate themselves even after clear felling (Watson).According to Setten the pure stands in Malaya are found normally above reach of the ordinary tides and are inundated only with spring tides. The stocking of the young stands is extremely dense and these pole woods may contain from 55.000-70.000 stems per ha. Setten says that berus holds the doubtful honour of achieving pride of place as the slowest growing of any commercial tree species in Malaya. From seed it takes c. 11-12 years to attain 6 m height, c. 16-17 years to attain 9 m by 5 cm diam. and c. 60 years to attain 30 cm diam. Its rotation should be longer than 30 years now accepted for average rotation in Malaya of mangrove forest. Heavy early thinnings are necessary to increase the rate of growth.

Uses. Timber mainly used for fire-wood; it is reddish, heavy, and close-grained. The bark is thin and of too poor quality for tanning purpose. According to Heyne the young radicles are in some areas occasionally eaten with sugar and coconut. Fisherman say that the wood has a peculiar odour which frightens away fish; and many do not. like to use it for making fish-traps.

The seed can be planted directly from the tree.