Sandoricum koetjape Merr.

Tree to 45(–50) m; bole to 1 m diam., fluted and sometimes with buttresses to 3 m tall. Bark pale pinkish brown, smooth, lenticellate to peeling with round flakes; inner bark pink; sapwood pale yellow; heartwood pink or reddish. Twigs cicatrose, lenticel-late, rough, grey-brown. Leafy twigs 4–7 mm diam., subglabrous to fulvous-tomentose. Crown domed. Leaves 18–40 cm long; petiole 7.5–16 cm, flattened (or even wing-ed in sicco) adaxially towards the ± swollen base, subglabrous to fulvous pubescent. Leaflets ovate, glabrous or with a few brown hairs on midrib adaxially, subglabrous to densely brown pubescent abaxially, pink when young, withering yellow or reddish, bases acute to rounded, ± asymmetric on lateral leaflets, apices acuminate, costae 7–14 (–20in cultivated forms) on each side, looped near margin, apical leaflet 8–20 by 5–14 cm, laterals usually smaller and narrower; petiolules 4–9 mm on lateral leaflets, 3–5.5 cm on apical. Thyrses 2.5–24 cm long, fragrant, produced in up to 8 of the most apical axils,; erect or weakly drooping; axes ± fulvous pubescent; primary branches to 8 cm long, squarrose, bearing secondary branches of glomerules of 1–5 flowers; bracts c. 7 mm long, narrowly triangular, densely pubescent, caducous, bracteoles somewhat smaller, subopposite; pedicels c. 3–5 mm, articulated with pseudopedicels, c. 1–1.5 cm long,continuous with calyx. Calyx c. 3.5 mm long, campanulate to cupular, splitting into 5 irregular obtuse or rounded lobes to 0.75 mm deep, pubescent, margin ciliate, yellow-green. Petals (4 or) 5,6–9 mm long, linear-lanceolate to oblanceolate, yellowish-green or pinkish, ± pubescent without, reflexed at anthesis, apices rounded to emargi-nate. Staminal tube ± pubescent without, pilose within, pale yellow to orangeish, margin with 10 lobes acute to bifid, somewhat reflexed at anthesis; anthers (8 or) 10, 1–1.5 mm long, narrowly oblong, apiculate, ± in 2 ranks, weakly exserted. Disk c. 1.5 mm long, membraneous, glabrous, margin irregularly laciniate. Ovary and style glabrous; stigmatic lobes c. 1.5 mm long. Drupe 5–8 cm diam., flattened-globose, velvety, yel-low or brownish when ripe, smooth to longitudinally wrinkled; pericarp with milky latex; mesocarp white, translucent, juicy sweet to very sour; endocarp tough, with 1 or 2 seeds. Seeds 20–35 by 12–21 mm, 9–16 mm thick, germinating in rotting fruit; co-tyledons pink inside.

A tropical plant. It suits the hot, wet tropical lowlands. It is native to SE Asia. It can withstand light frosts. It needs light. They occur from northern Luzon to southern Mindanao in the Philippines and are very common both wild and cultivated. It grows in forests up to 600 m above sea level. It grows in sandy and clay soils.

UsesThe mesocarp is the part eaten. In some forms it is exceedingly sweet and the sour ones may be ‘excruciating’ (Corner 1940). Nevertheless, some trees have ex-cellent flavour and Popenoe (l.c., quoting Webster) remarks that should seedless or semi-seedless forms be found, the sentul could “become one of the most popular of the tropical fruits.” An excellent jam has been prepared from the fruits (Barrett, l.c.) which in some forms smell like ripe peaches. Rumpf notes that the fruit may be eaten raw or cooked, like lemons, with fish in Ambon. It may also be candied or fermented with rice in the production of an alcoholic drink. Although not particularly high in Vitamin C, it is a good source of Vitamin B [ Hermano & Sepulveda Philipp. J. Soc. 54 1934 70 ]. See also Sotto E.W.M. Verheij & R.E. Coronel Edible fruits and nuts, Plant Res. SE Asia (PROSEA Handbook) 2 1991 284. The tree is fast growing when young, Roxburgh (l.c.) recording that a 24-year-old tree in the Calcutta Botanic Garden had a bole with a circumference of over 2 m. The tree has been widely planted for shade: it is recommended as an avenue species. The timber is red, moderately hard and takes a fine polish. Rumpf records that it was a dur-able timber for house construction in Ambon but Anon. (1972) reported that it perishes on exposure to water and borers. Nevertheless, it is in much demand in Burma for the manufacture of sandals and has been used in the construction of barrels, boats, carts and butchers' blocks. The bark has been used in tanning fishing nets. It, and also par-ticularly the roots, are claimed as efficacious in the treatment of a number of medical conditions (see Perry for digest), its value being known in the seventeenth century and recorded by Mercado [see Fern.-Vill. Nov. App. 1880 42 ]. Stems yield the triterpen-oids 3-oxo-olean-12-en-29 oic acid, its 3-dihydroderivative katonic acid and an A-ring seco derivative of katonic acid called koetjapic acid, C30H46O4; the first-named two components have significant cancerostatic activities in cell cultures [ Kaneda et al. J. Nat. Prod. 55 1992 654 ]. Two new limonoids, sandoricin and 6-hydroxysandoricin, have been isolated from the seeds; both have been tested for insect-antifeedant activity with larvae of two lepidopteran species and found to be active [ Powell et al. J. Nat. Prod. 54 1991 241 ].

Plants can be grown from seed, air-layering or budding. They can also be grafted.