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Horsfieldia polyspherula (Hook.f.) J.Sinclair var. polyspherula

Family Name:

Myristicaceae

Full Sun

Semi Shade

Lots of Water

Moderate Water

Bird-Attracting Plant

Native to Singapore

Ornamental Flowers

Tree

Plant Division	Angiosperms (Flowering Seed Plants)
Plant Growth Form	Tree (Big (>30m))
Lifespan (in Singapore)	Perennial

Mode of Nutrition	Autotrophic
Plant Shape	Irregular

Native Distribution	Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore, Borneo, and the Philippines
Native Habitat	Terrestrial (Primary Rainforest, Freshwater Swamp Forest)
Preferred Climate Zone	Tropical

Local Conservation Status

Native to Singapore (Vulnerable (VU))

Growth Form	It is a tree up to 40 m tall.
Foliage	Its alternate, stalked leaves possess leaf blades that are thickly membranous to papery, egg-shaped-oblong to oblong-lance-shaped, veins distinctly raised above, light brown or chocolate-brown and hairless below, and 7–28 by 2.5–9 cm.
Flowers	The species is dioecious with individual trees producing either male or female flowers. Its flowering shoot (inflorescence) has sparse to dense woolly hairs and is 0.6 mm long. Its male inflorescence is 4–20 by 3–12 cm, and contains flowers in up to 8-flowered clusters. Its female inflorescence is up to 8 cm long. The male or female flowers are hairless or gradually becoming so, jade-green, turning to yellow when mature, and its male flowers are smaller than its female flowers.

Fruit	Its fruiting clusters (infructescences) contain 1–6 fruits each. Its fruits are partially round or ovoid, hairless, and are 1.9–6 by 1.4–5 cm.
Habitat	It grows in lowland forests, freshwater swamp forests, ridge-top forests, and heath forests, up to 1,100 m altitude. It occurs locally in Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, Central Catchment Nature Reserve (Bukit Kallang, Mandai Forest, and Nee Soon Swamp Forest), and Chestnut Avenue.
Associated Fauna	Its flowers are insect-pollinated. The bright red arils are eaten by mammals and hornbills.
Cultivation	It can be propagated by seed.
Etymology	Horsfieldia, named after Dr. Thomas Horsfield (1773–1859), an American botanist who explored in the Malesian islands; Latin poly, many; Latin sphaera, globe or ball, referring to the species’ ball-like fruits
Ethnobotanical Uses	Others: It has horticultural potential as a park tree.

Landscaping	It may be suitable for planting along roadsides or in parks.
Desirable Plant Features	Ornamental Flowers
Landscape Uses	General, Parks & Gardens, Small Gardens

Thematic Landscaping

Bird & Wildlife Garden

Fauna Pollination Dispersal Associated Fauna	Bird-Attracting (Fruits)
Pollination Method(s)	Biotic (Fauna)
Seed or Spore Dispersal	Biotic (Fauna) (Vertebrates (Other Mammal))

Rootzone Tolerance	Moist Soils, Waterlogged Soils (Drains Site)
Propagation Method	Seed

Foliar Type	Simple / Unifoliate
Foliar Arrangement Along Stem	Alternate
Foliar Attachment to Stem	Petiolate
Foliar Shape(s)	Non-Palm Foliage (Lanceolate, Elliptical, Oblong)
Foliar Venation	Pinnate / Net
Foliar Margin	Entire

Branch Angle (wrt vertical)	Horizontal
Trunk Type (Non Palm)	Woody

Flower & Plant Sexuality	Unisexual Flowers , Dioecious
Flower Colour(s)	Yellow / Golden

Flower Grouping

Cluster / Inflorescence

Fruit Type

Images

Master ID	30002
Species ID	4311
Flora Disclaimer	The information in this website has been compiled from reliable sources, such as reference works on medicinal plants. It is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment and NParks does not purport to provide any medical advice. Readers should always consult his/her physician before using or consuming a plant for medicinal purposes.