Lannea coromandelica (Houtt.) Merr.

Deciduous trees, 5-10 m tall; branchlets densely covered with ferruginous stellate hairs. Petiole and rachis terete, sparsely covered with ferruginous stellate hairs; leaf blade 10-33 cm, imparipinnately compound, with (5-)7-9(-11) leaflets; leaflet petiolule 1-3 mm, with ferruginous stellate hairs; leaflet blade membranous or papery, ovate or oblong-ovate, 5.5-9 × 2.5-4 cm, adaxially glabrous, abaxially mixed pubescent and ferruginous stellate-haired, base oblique, subrounded, margin entire, apex long acuminate or caudate-acuminate, lateral veins 6-10 pairs, slightly impressed adaxially, prominent abaxially. Inflorescences paniculate or racemose, appearing before leaves, gathered at branch apices or on short shoots in leaf-scar axils, male inflorescence 15-30 cm, female inflorescence smaller; subtending bracts 1-2 mm with ciliate margins. Flowers small, yellow or purplish. Calyx lobes ovate to broadly ovate, ca. 1 mm, glabrous with ciliate margins. Petals ovate-oblong, ca. 2.7 × 1.5 mm, recurved at anthesis. Stamens 8, subequal to petals in male flower, reduced and sterile in female flower. Disk annular. Ovary glabrous, ovoid, 4-locular, usually only 1 ovule fertile. Drupe ovoid to slightly reniform, purplish red at maturity, 6-10 × 0.5-1 mm. Fl. Mar, fr. Apr-Jun.

In lowland forest, occasionally found up to 900(-1200) m. The leaves are shed in dry weather or in the dry season and the trees then flower on the bare twigs or as the new leaves develop, but inflorescences are very inconspicuous ( CORNER ). Fl. Jan.-Dec.; fr. Febr., April.BACKER (1907, 376-377) confirmed the note by VALETON that in Java fruits are almost absent, and three observed were immature. He found near Jakarta only ½ flowers. I confirm lack of fruit setting in Malesia, though I have seen many ♂ flowers.

Uses. According to HEYNE ( HEYNE Nutt. Pl. 1927 976 ) easily propagated by cuttings and used for living fences; also in the drier parts used as a roadside tree. Especially after injuries of the bark and trimmings masses of glassy-white exudate of hardening gum appear which may give leafless trees an eerie appearance. The gum is of inferior quality. Otherwise the tree has only some minor local occasional uses; the leaves can be eaten as a vegetable. In India the 'wodier wood' and also the gum is variously used (BURKILL).

It can be grown easily from cuttings. It is used for fencing.