Calamander, kalu mediriya
Diospyros quaesita

Family: Ebenaceae

What it is like

Diospyros quaesita is a large tree endemic to Sri Lanka. It produces a super luxury class wood that is hard, greyish brown, and variegated with broad or narrow belts of black. It has no edible part but the heartwood is used medicinally to treat wounds.

Diospyros quaesita is an evergreen Tree growing to 30 m (98ft) by 20 m (65ft) at a slow rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 10. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers dry or moist soil.

Height (m): 30

Where it is found

Infrequent in lowland wet evergreen forest and in dry forest.

E. Asia - southestern Sri Lanka.

Conservation Status: Status: Vulnerable A1cd

Countries/locations it is found in

Sri Lanka

How it is used

Food

Rating: 0

Medicine

Rating: 2

The heartwood is used to heal wounds.

Skin: Plants used in miscellaneous treatments for the skin.

Other

Rating: 4

Other Uses: The wood is hard, greyish brown, variegated with broad or narrow belts of black. A beautifully marked heartwood, it is used in high-end applications such as ornamental cabinet work, furniture, carvings, musical instruments. We do not have any more specific information for this species. However, though varying widely in the relative proportion and the colouring of sapwood and heartwood, all the woods of the genus Diospyros are practically indistinguishable as regards their structure, as described below: Whether or not a given species produces heartwood depends largely on the size the tree has attained, but evidently also on other conditions, as there is a wide variation in the relative amounts of sapwood and heartwood even in individuals of the same species. When produced, the heartwood can be black with rosy, yellowish, brownish, or ashy streaks, sometimes it is nearly or totally black; it is generally sharply demarcated from the thin to very wide band of whitish, yellowish, or red sapwood. The texture is fine, smooth and (especially in the heartwood) very dense; the grain is generally very straight. The wood is hard to very hard; heavy to very heavy; the sapwood is tough and flexible whilst the heartwood is brittle; the heartwood is very durable, the sapwood moderately so. It is difficult to season well, logs almost invariably checking in several directions from the heart outward, while sawn lumber must be stacked carefully and weighted to prevent warping; once thoroughly dried, however, it becomes very stable. Its density makes it difficult to work, but it takes a beautiful surface under sharp tools. Small trees containing little or no heartwood are used locally for posts, beams, joists, rafters, window sills, parts of agricultural implements, etc.; also, in lumbering, small poles are used for skids on account of their hardness, toughness and smooth wearing qualities. The heartwood (or sometimes sap and heart together) is used for scabbards, canes, hilts, tool handles, gunstocks, saw frames, etc.; it is a favorite for musical instruments, especially finger boards and keys of guitars; furniture, cabinetwork, inlaying; paper weights, inkstands and similar desk supplies; the sapwood, which is almost as hard as the heartwood and very much tougher, is an excellent material for T-squares and other drawing instruments, for shuttles, bobbins, spindles, golf-club heads and shafts, axe, pick, and hammer handles, etc.

Furniture: A few miscellaneous uses that do not fit easily into other headings.

Wood: A list of the trees and shrubs that are noted for having useful wood.

How it is grown

A large tree that naturally occurs in the evergreen forests of lowland wet zones. Slow growing for a high-value timber but could be combined with faster growing products such as cardamon, fishtail palm and rattan. Diospyros species are dioecious and require both male and female forms to be grown if fruit and seed are required.

Propagating it: Seed - in general the seed of Diospyros species has a very short viability and so should be sown as soon as possible. The flesh should be removed since this contains germination inhibitors. Sow the seed in a shady position in a nursery seedbed. The sowing media for ebony uses soil and fine sand at the ratio 3:1. The seed is planted horizontally or vertically with the radicle end down, with a sowing depth of 1 - 1.5x the thickness of seed. Distance between the seeds is 3 - 5cm. Seeds are very sensitive to desiccation during germination and early growth, so must be regularly watered at this time. Normally the seed will germinate after one week. As a rule fresh seeds have a high percentage of fertility. The seedlings develop long taproots at an early stage, often before any appreciable elongation of the shoot takes place. The growth of the seedling is decidedly slow .

Best place to grow:

Habit: Tree

Hardiness: 10-12

Growth: Slow

Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)

Shade: No shade

Moisture: Dry, moist

Things to keep in mind

Its other names

Local names

Synonyms

No synonyms are recorded for this name.