Cinnamomum politum Miq.

16. Cinnamomum politum Miq. View in CoL — Map 5 View Map 5

Cinnamomum politum Miq. (1864) 265; Merr. (1921) 273; Cammerl. (1925) 493; Masam. (1942) 309; Kosterm. (1964) 340; (1970b) 59; Coode et al. (1996) 151. — Type: Korthals s.n. (lecto U, barcode U0002664 , here designated;iso L, barcodes L0035920 , L0035921 , L0035922 ), Kalimantan, Mt Sakoembang .

Cinnamomum xylophyllum Kosterm.(1969) 467; (1970b) 59;J.A.R. Anderson (1980) 223. — Type: Kostermans 13067 (holo BO; iso BM, L, SING), Kalimantan, West Kutei , G. Palimasan, Belajan river, near Tabang .

Tree to 30 m, to 75 cm diam. Bark smooth or mottled, brownish or greyish; inner bark orange or reddish, fragrant with clove scent; sapwood yellowish or whitish. Twigs terete, 2 –3 mm diam, glabrous, apically subangular, glabrous, dark brown. Terminal buds not perulate, conical, c. 4 mm long, glabrous. Leaves opposite or subopposite, drying yellowish brown, triplinerved or trinerved, thickly coriaceous, glabrous below; blade not bullate, without domatia, ovate, elliptic to lanceolate, 5 –10(–12) by 2– 5 cm, base cuneate, slightly attenuating to the petiole, apex acuminate or acute with blunt tip, acumen to 1 cm long; midrib c. 1 mm broad, slender, raised above, and flat below; lateral veins raised above, flat below, extending to the base of acumen; major intercostal subscalariform, veins 1–2 mm apart, slender, obscure; minor intercostal veins obscure, reticulate; petiole 1(–1.5) cm long, 1–1.5 mm diam, grooved above, glabrous. Inflorescences axillary or subterminal, paniculate-cymose with first and second order branching; to 10 cm long, rachis angular, c. 1 mm broad, sparsely minute-appressed hairy; bracts caducous. Flowers appressed hairy; pedicel to 4 mm long; hypanthium c. 1 mm high; perianth lobes elliptic, 2 – 3 mm long, appressed hairy; fertile stamens c. 2 mm long, anthers of first and second whorl stamens 4-locular, that of third whorl 2- or 4-locular, ovoid with truncate tip, filaments c. 2/3 the length of the stamen; glands sessile and attached at middle of filament; staminodes c. 1 mm long, sagittate; ovary ellipsoid to globose, c. 1– 2 mm long, stigma peltate. Fruits ellipsoid, c. 1 by 0.7 cm; cupule cup-shaped, 6 –7 mm high, c. 4 mm diam, glabrescent; perianth lobes persistent, triangular, c. 3 by 2 mm, appressed hairy; pedicel stout, terete, c. 2 mm long, c. 1 mm diam.

Distribution — Endemic to Borneo: Sarawak (Bintulu, Lundu, Marudi and Miri districts), Sabah (Papar district), Brunei and East Kalimantan.

Habitat & Ecology — In mixed dipterocarp forest on leached sandy soil, podsolised white sand or sandstone-derived soil, and also in kerangas and submontane forest at altitudes to 1000 m.

Vernacular names — But (Penan), Medang keplah, Medang lawang (both Malay).

Uses — The wood is traded under the name medang. The bark is mixed in hot drink such as coffee and is believed to give strength and relieve muscle pain.

Notes — 1. Kostermans initially described C. xylophyllum as a new species in 1969 but later reduced it to C. politum in 1970b. Cinnamomum xylophyllum only differs from C. politum by having 2-locular anthers at the third whorl of stamens (vs 4-locular) but vegetatively they are similar in having thickly coriaceous leaf and flat lateral veins at leaf undersurface. In comparison to the other Bornean species, C. politum is easily discriminated by its glabrous leaf blade, flat midrib and lateral veins on the leaf abaxial and persistent triangular perianth lobes on cupule.

2. The specimens from submontane forest up to 1470 m have smaller leaf size and shorter inflorescence length ( S 47323, S 47357 and S 60555 ) than the lowland specimens.