Terminalia impediens
Family: Combretaceae
What it is like
A tree up to 42 m tall. Often the tree has buttresses. The twigs are usually fairly large. The young parts of the tree are sometimes hairy. The young leaves are purple underneath. It has leaves that are clustered at the ends of thick twigs. Leaves can be 25 cm x 12 cm or larger and they taper towards the stalk. The leaves are often blunt at the tip. The leaves often have a purplish colour underneath. The flowers occur on spikes 10-30 cm long. The flowers are small. The flower spikes are longer than okari nut (Terminalia kaernbachii) and less hairy looking. The fruit are 7-9 cm long by 3.5-6 cm wide. They are red and have fibrous flesh. They usually do not have a wings or flanges. Inside there is a large woody stone. The stone inside the fruit splits into 2 unequal parts. The 2 kernels inside are edible.
There are about 200-250 Terminalia species. They are tropical.
Where it is found
A tropical plant. It occurs in the lowland forest in Papua New Guinea. It grows from sea level to 1,000 m above sea level.
Countries/locations it is found in
Pacific, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands
How it is used for food
The kernel inside the hard shell of the fruit is edible.
Edible parts
Kernel, nuts, seeds
How it is grown
Trees grow wild and are preserved in gardens. They grow from seed.