Borneo olive, Sibu olive
Canarium odontophyllum

Family: Burseraceae

What it is like

A medium sized tree. It grows up to 35 m high and can be 50 cm across in the trunk. It has buttresses. The small branches are 1-3 cm thick and have dense rusty coloured hairs. When cut crossways there is a ring of small vascular strands around the edge of the branch, more like in a root. The small leafy structure (stipule) near the base of the leaf stalk remains on the branch. It is split along the edge into 2-4 cm long lobes. This stipule is 2-9 cm long by 1.5-3.5 cm wide. The leaves have 3-8 pairs of leaflets. These leaflets are oblong and 15-40 cm long by 5-10 cm across. They are leathery and can have hairs along the main vein. The base of the leaflets is wedge shaped and the edges can have teeth. There are 15-28 pairs of veins which are raised underneath the leaf. The flower clusters are in the axils of leaves and near the ends of branches. The male flower stalks are 30-50 cm long with many flowers while the female are 15-20 cm long with few flowers. The flowers are hairy. The fruit clusters are 20-35 cm long with up to 40 fruit. The fruit are oval and rounded to triangular in cross section. They are 2.5-3.5 cm long by 1.7-2 cm wide. The shell is smooth with 3 ribs. There is 1 seed inside and 2 empty shells.

There are 80-95 Canarium species. The fruit is high in oil content.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. It grows in forests from sea level to 450 m altitude. It can be in swamps and along rivers.

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Australia, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia (country/location of origin), Sarawak, Pacific, Philippines, SE Asia

How it is used for food

The blue-black fruit are eaten raw. For eating fresh they are soaked in hot water for 10 minutes until softened and eaten with soy sauce or as a snack. The kernel is also eaten.

It is widely cultivated in Sarawak for its edible fruit.

Edible parts

Fruit, kernel, nuts, seed

How it is grown

When grown from seed, 70% or the trees are male.

Flowering is from March to April and September to October and fruiting from May to November. Fruit can only be kept for 2-3 days after harvesting. The fruit are put into hot water to soften.

Its other names

Local names

Bundui-bundui, Dabai, Dabang, Dabu, Danau majang, Dawai, Kambayau, Kembayau, Kumbayan, Kurihang, Saluan

Synonyms

Canarium beccarii Engl.; Canarium multifidum H. J. Lam.; Canarium palawanense Elm.;