COMMON NAME:
Smooth Narra
LOCAL NAMES:
naga (Cebu, Bohol); narra (Negros Oriental, Siquijor); laga (Negros Oriental)
DISTRIBUTION:
Found in primary and secondary forests at low and medium altitudes throughout the Philippines; commonly associated with molave.
PROPAGATION:
By seeds and vegetative methods (i.e. cuttings, tissue culture and grafting).
DESCRIPTION:
Habit:
Large tree growing up to 35 m high and 200 cm dbh; trunk usually fluted and buttressed up to 7 m high from the base; crown large, with many long spreading branches that are at first ascending, but eventually arch over and sometimes droop at the ends.
Leaves:
Odd-pinnate; 9-11 alternate leaflets; ovate to elliptic; 7-11 cm long and 3.5-5.5 cm wide; base obtuse to rounded, apex acuminate; upper surface shiny.
Flowers:
Small, yellow, numerous, fragrant and borne in large axillary panicles.
Fruit:
About 5 cm across, with central woody-corky bulge containing several seeds surrounded with wings; species distinguished from the prickly narra (Pterocarpus vidalinaus forma ichinatus) because of its smooth fruit.
Bark:
Outer bark smooth, grayish; peels off and exudes red sap.
USES:
Wood:
Used for fine furniture, cabinets, door panels, musical instrument, flooring, wall, veneer, plywood and balusters; wood gives a reddish dye.
Flowers:
Source of high-quality honey.
Medicinal:
Bark and resin extracts used for diarrhea; root extract applied on syphilitic sores; wood increases urination, cures diarrhea, and has antimalarial properties; fruit kernel can induce vomiting; red latex used in folk remedies for tumors and the plant for cancers, especially of the mouth; young leaves applied on ripening boils, skin ulcers and prickly heat; leaves soaked in water relieve stomach trouble, sprue (a tropical disease affecting mouth, throat and digestion), palpitation of the heart, rheumatism, abnormal mucous discharge from the vagina and fever; also used as lotion, shampoo, disinfectant and insecticide; leaves reported to significantly inhibit the growth of carcinoma cells in mice; kino obtained from this tree contains kinotannic acid and can be administered for diarrhea, often combined with opium; also used as a folk remedy for bladder ailments, dropsy, headache, sores, stones, thrush, and tumors of the abdomen.
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