Pipturus argenteus (J.G. Forster) Wedd.
Family
Urticaceae
Synonyms
Urtica argentea J.G. Forster, Pipturus propinquus (Decne.) Wedd., Pipturus velutinus (Decne.) Wedd., Pipturus incanus (Blume) Wedd.
Vernacular Names
|
Indonesia |
Ki beunteur (Sundanese), bedreg (Javanese), lobiri (Moluccas). |
|
Papua New Guinea |
Evakau (Konis, New Ireland), yiwiya (Aseki, Morobe Province), helo (Tipku, Fane, Central Province). |
Geographical Distributions
Pipturus argenteus is distributed from the Pacific Islands, northern Australia and New Guinea to the Philippines and Borneo, Java, Sumatra and the islands on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia, and westward to the Seychelles.
Description
Pipturus argenteus is a dioecious shrub or tree that can reach up to 10(-20) m tall. Its trunk is 8-20(-40) cm in diametre, with smooth bark, grey and lenticellate. The inner bark is soft, pale yellow to green and with sparsely to densely hairy twigs.
The leaves are ovate, measure 8-15(-35) cm x 5-10(-25) cm, acute at base, with obtuse, rounded to cordate, acuminate apex, with serrate margin, densely strigose and densely woolly beneath.
The petiole is 2-12(-24) cm long while stipules are 3-14 mm long. The spikes or sparsely branched panicles are up to 12(-20) cm long and bracteolate. The flowers are clustered at intervals, subsessile to sessile. The cluster is 3-7 mm in diametre. The male flowers are 4-merous while the female flowers are urn-shaped perianth, minutely 4-toothed, densely pubescent and with up to 3 mm long style.
The achene is white to brown, partially immersed in the spherical, fleshy receptacle and up to 7 mm in diametre.
Ecology / Cultivation
Pipturus argenteus is common in disturbed habitats, especially in the eastern part of its area of distribution, from sea-level up to 1250 m altitude.
Line Drawing / Photograph
References
- Plant Resources of South-East Asia No.12(2): Medicinal and poisonous plants 2.
