Agarwood; Malayan Eaglewood Tree
Aquilaria agallocha · Thymelaeaceae · 침향나무
How to spot it
Resin builds up in the wood of damaged or wounded trees to form the fragrant wood called agarwood (kayu gaharu).
Look
- Leaves
- Thin, leathery, egg-oblong leaves (6 to 12 x 1.9 to 5.5 cm) with fine parallel veins and a long drawn-out tip.
- Flowers
- Fragrant green to dull yellow flowers (5 to 6 mm) grow up to 10 together in short-stalked clusters 2.5 cm across, and are insect pollinated.
- Fruit
- Somewhat woody, flat, egg-shaped green fruit (2.5 to 4 x 2.5 cm); the pear-shaped seeds (10 x 6 mm) are covered with orange-brown hairs.
- Bark
- Smooth trunk with dark gray to pale gray bark that flakes off; the inner bark is creamy white.
Where it grows
- Native to
- Native to Singapore, growing in lowland primary and secondary forest and on hills and ridges up to 750 m elevation; its local conservation status is Vulnerable (VU).