Siam gamboge. Hanbury's garcinia
Garcinia hanburyi

Family: Clusiaceae

What it is like

Garcinia hanburyi is an evergreen Tree growing to 15 m (49ft) by 15 m (49ft) at a medium rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 10. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils and can grow in very acid soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil.

Height (m): 15

Where it is found

Rainforests, at elevations up to 800 metres.

Southeast Asia - Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.

Conservation Status: This taxon has not yet been assessed

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Cambodia, Indochina, Indonesia, Laos, SE Asia, Thailand, Vietnam

How it is used

Food

Rating: 0

Medicine

Rating: 1

The gum resin obtained from the trunk is a drastic purgative, an emetic, and a vermifuge used for treating tape worm. It is no longer used in human medicine. Gamboge is odourless and tasteless or slightly acid. Large doses of gamboge, administered as a medicine, can be fatal.

Other

Rating: 2

The tree is valued because of the resinous sap, called gamboge, which exudes from incisions in the bark. This sap is used as a golden-yellow colouring matter for varnishes, lacquer, paints, and ink. It is used as pigment in water colours. The reddish-yellow to brownish-orange sap contains 70 - 80% resin and 15 - 25% gum. The main acidic component of the resin is cambogic acid (C38H44O8). The main components of the gum are arabinose (ca. 50%), and galactose (ca. 40%); the gum is soluble in water, where it forms a yellow emulsion. The wood is pale or brownish-yellow, straight grained, with fine texture, and fairly heavy, weighing about 900 kg/m. It is moderately hard and works easily; it takes a fine polish. It is sometimes used for interior work. Carbon Farming: An industrial crop - hydrocarbon.

Industrial Crop: Hydrocarbon: Materials, chemicals and energy include bioplastics, rubber, biomass products gasoline, jet fuel, diesel, butane, propane, biogas. Plants are usually resprouting plants and saps.

Management: Standard: Plants grow to their standard height. Harvest fruit, seeds, or other products. Non-Destructive management systems.

Regional Crop: These crops have been domesticated and cultivated regionally but have not been adopted elsewhere and are typically not traded globally, Examples in this broad category include perennial cottons and many nuts and staple fruits.

Industrial Crop: Hydrocarbon: Materials, chemicals and energy include bioplastics, rubber, biomass products gasoline, jet fuel, diesel, butane, propane, biogas. Plants are usually resprouting plants and saps.

Management: Standard: Plants grow to their standard height. Harvest fruit, seeds, or other products. Non-Destructive management systems.

Regional Crop: These crops have been domesticated and cultivated regionally but have not been adopted elsewhere and are typically not traded globally, Examples in this broad category include perennial cottons and many nuts and staple fruits.

Carbon Farming: Plants that can be a critical part of the solution to climate problems. The Carbon Farming Solution - Eric Toensmeier.

How it is grown

A plant of the moist, lowland tropics, where it grows at elevations up to 800 metres. It is found in areas where the annual rainfall is up to 2,500 mm. Trees are not usually tapped before they are 20 years old, when the trunk has attained a diameter of about 15 cm. A spiral incision is made in the trunk just below the lowest branches, and the exudate is collected in a bamboo container. About every 3 days the content is poured into smaller bamboo stem parts (about 75 cm long), in which the gum-resin coagulates in about a month or longer. The bamboo containers are then cracked and the gamboge is removed in cylindrical sticks (pipe gamboge), which is the usual form in trade. Sometimes gamboge is moulded and pressed into cakes. The gum-resin obtained from this plant is often called Siamese gamboge to distinguish it from the similar product from the bark of G. Morella, which is called Indian gamboge. The species are closely related, and this species has been treated in the past as a variety of G. Morella

Propagating it: Seed - we have no specific information on this species, but the seed of most members of the genus can be slow to germinate, even if sown fresh, often taking 6 months or more.

Best place to grow:

Habit: Tree

Hardiness: 10-12

Growth: Medium

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

Shade: Semi-shade, no shade

Moisture: Moist

Things to keep in mind

The gum-resin obtained from the trunk has been used in the past as a medicine. However, large doses can be fatal, and so it is no longer recommended for human use.

Its other names

Local names

Bua moi, Dang hoang, Gambojia, Gummi-gutti, Gutti, Gummigutt, Indian gamboge tree, Rung, Rong, Tamala

Synonyms

Garcinia morella pedicellata Hanbury