Tree 20-30 m by about 70 cm. Young branchlets rufous-pubescent or rufous-villous (especially in seedlings), glabrescent or retaining their indumentum for a considerable time. Leaves papyraceous or chartaceous, opposite, subopposite or alternate, rufous-sericeous or rufous-pubescent to almost glabrous, sometimes pellucid-punctate, elliptic, narrowly elliptic or oblong-ellptic, 3-14 by 1.8-6½ cm, usually acutely acuminate at the apex and rounded or broadly cuneate at the base; nerves 9-12 pairs usually rather closely spaced; domatia absent or inconspicuous; petiole appressed-pubes-cent or glabrous, 5-20 mm, 2 glands often present at or near the apex. Flowers sessile, yellow, all hermaphrodite, in terminal panicles; rhachides rufous-tomentose or pubescent. Bracts filiform, 2 mm long, very caducous. Lower receptacle (ovary) 1-1½ mm long, sericeous or shiny and almost glabrous; upper receptacle shallow-cupuliform, ½ by2mm, nearly glabrous. Filaments glabrous, 2½-3 mm; anthers 0.3 mm long. Disk barbate. Style glabrous 2½-2½ mm long. Fruit ellpsoid to subglobose, 5-angled, glabrous, 20-30 by 8-20 mm (when dried), endocarp shaped like a 5-pointed star in cross-section.
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A large tree. It grows 40 m tall. The trunk can be 2.1 m across. It rests on or climbs other trees. It can have buttresses up to 3 m tall. The leaves are almost opposite and sword shaped. They are hairy when young. The flowers are in spikes in the axils of leaves and near the ends of branches. The fruit is oblong and fleshy with 5 ridges.
Forests at low and medium altitudes, in the Malay Peninsula and the Philippines often along the seashore, often planted inland.
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Forests at low and medium elevations, often along the seashore. Often planted when found inland.
A tropical plant. It grows along sea shores up to 200 m above sea level.
Uses. The wood is used for door-posts, beams and planks, boats and masts. In Indo-China beautiful furniture is said to be made from it. Tannin is extracted from the fruits and the bark gives a blue dye. The fruits are similar to and often mistaken for the commercial myrobalans (T. chebula Retz.).
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The fruit are eaten raw or dried. They are mostly just chewed.
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