May
Calamus tetradactylus

Family: Arecaceae

What it is like

A large cane or rattan. It grows 20-70 m long. The stems are in clusters and it can be 6 m long by 1.8 cm thick. The leaf sheaths are green and without hairs. It can have spines 1.5 cm long. The leafy stalk is 50 cm long with 10 leaflets in clusters on each side. The middle ones are 11-18 cm long by 2-7 cm wide. The flowering shoot is 1.8 m long. The fruit are round and yellowish. They are 0.9 cm across.

There are 375-400 Calamus species. There are 175 species in tropical Asia.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. It grows near rivers. It is in lowland rain forests below 1,000 m above sea level in southern China.

Countries/locations it is found in

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

How it is used for food

The fruit are eaten.

Edible parts

Fruit, shoots, vegetable

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

Dot may, Ha vay, May, May ruot ga, Phdau saeng, Vor seung

Synonyms

Calamus bonianus Becc.; Calamus tetradactylis Hance var. bonianus (Becc.) Gagnep. & Conrard; Calamus cambojensis Becc.;