Knema laurina (Blume) Warb., Mon. Myrist. (1897)

Latin for 'like a laurel'.

Synonyms
Knema cantleyi (Hook.f.) Warb.
Knema furfurascens Gand.
Myristica cantleyi Hook.f.
Myristica laurina Blume
Myristica laurina var. amboinensis (Warb.) Boerl.
Myristica laurina var. bancana (Warb.) Boerl.
Myristica laurina var. borneensis Miq.
Myristica laurina var. longifolia Miq.

Diagnostics
Sub-canopy tree up to 29 m tall and 30 cm dbh. Bark grey or (reddish) brown, essentially smooth but fine scaly or slightly cracked, sometimes furrowed; inner bark reddish; sapwood white, yellowish, red with brown rays, light brown, or yellow with brown stripes. Leaves glossy above, glaucous with yellowish veins beneath. Flowers pink or red inside. Fruits up to 3.5 by 3 cm, yellow, golden brown, or red-brown hairy.

Description
Shrub or tree 3-20(-30) m. Twigs 2-5 mm diameter, at first with dense, rough, rusty hairs 0.5-2 mm long, late glabrescent; bark smooth or striate, not tending to crack or flake. Leaves membranous or coriaceous, obovate-elliptic to oblong-lanceolate, 9-30 by 2.5-10.5 cm, base attenuate, rounded, obtuse, rarely subcordate, apex subobtuse to acuteacuminate; drying greenish to brown above, lower surface finely papillate, with persistent +/- equally long-stalked dendroid hairs 1 mm long (var. laurina), or hairs of mixed sizes, sessile and stalked dendroid; dots absent; midrib +/- raised above, late glabrescent; nerves 12-28 pairs, flat or sunken above; venation raised, clearly visible above; petiole late glabrescent, 10-20 by 1.5-3.5 mm. Inflorescences: sessile or pedunculate up to 0.5 mm, brachyblast simple or 2-fid, to 7 mm long, in male 5-20- flowered, female 3-8-flowered; flowers with dense rusty hairs 0.5-1.5(-2) mm long; perianth 3-lobed, pink or red inside. Maleflowers: pedicel (0.5-)2-5 mm long, bracteole subpersistent or caduous, (nearly) apical; buds obovoid(-oblong), 3-5(-6) by 2-4 mm, cleft c. 1/2, lobes 0.5-1 mm thick; staminal disc circular, flat or slightly concave, 1-1.5 mm diameter; anthers 6-9, sessile, (sub)erect, 0.3-1 mm long, not or little touching; androphore somewhat tapering, 1.5-2.5 mm long, rarely minutely pubescent at the base. Female flowers: pedicel to 1 mm long, bracteole apical; buds ovoid(-oblong), 4-6 by 2.5-3.5 mm, cleft c. 1/2, lobes 0.5(-1) mm thick; ovary subglobose, (1.5-)2-2.5 mm diameter; style slender, including 2-lobed stigma (1-)1.5-2 mm long, each lobe +/- erect, 4-lobulate. Fruits 1-5 per infructescence, ovoid or ellipsoid(-oblong), apex obtuse to subacute, 1.5-2.5(-3) by 1-2 cm, with rusty hairs 1-3 mm long; dry pericarp 1.5-2 mm thick; fruiting pedicel 1(-5) mm long. [from Flora Malesiana]

Ecology
In undisturbed mixed dipterocarp forests up to 1500 m altitude. On ridges and hillsides with clay to sandy soils, also on ultrabasic soils.

Distribution
Peninsular Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Java, Borneo.

Local names
Borneo: Binarak-binan, Dara-dara, Darah-darah, Gempusu, Kumpang, Pendara putih.