Mangifera (PROSEA Timbers)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia
Introduction

Mangifera L. (timber aspects)

Protologue: Sp. pl. 1: 200 (1753); Gen. pl. ed. 5: 93 (1754).

Family: Anacardiaceae

Chromosome number: x= unknown;M. caesia,M. caloneura,M. foetida,M. indica,M. sylvatica: 2n= 40

Trade groups

Machang: lightweight to medium-weight hardwood, e.g. Mangifera foetida Lour., M. indica L., M. laurina Blume, M. minor Blume, M. monandra Merr.

Vernacular names

Machang: mangowood (En)
Indonesia: membacang
Malaysia: asam (Sabah), bachang (Sarawak)
Philippines: paho. Burma (Myanmar): thayet
Thailand: mamuang
Vietnam: xoài.

Origin and geographic distribution

Mangifera consists of about 60 species and is distributed from India and Sri Lanka, through Burma (Myanmar), Indo-China, southern China, Thailand, the Andaman Islands and throughout Malesia, to the Solomon Islands and Micronesia. Western Malesia is richest in species: Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Borneo each have about 30 species. The number of species endemic to one island or archipelago is notably small.

Uses

Machang wood is used for light construction or more heavy construction under cover, planking, ceiling, door panels, interior finish, flooring, mouldings, packing boxes, crates, good quality charcoal, gunstocks, and veneer and plywood. The heartwood is often beautifully streaked and is then particularly suitable for high-class furniture and joinery. Locally (e.g. in India) the wood is used for tea chests, canoes, oar blades and implements. In Java, the old wood was formerly used for making "lumpang" or "lesung", traditional implements used to dehusk rice. The wood is also used to culture mushrooms.

Many species are primarily planted for their edible fruits (the well-known mangoes), especially M. indica and M. odorata . The fruits are eaten fresh or as an ingredient of pickles, chutneys, juices and pastes. Seed kernels are sometimes used to feed animals. Young leaves are eaten fresh or cooked as a vegetable. Various parts of the plants (particularly bark, dried flowers and fruits) are used medicinally as astringents and against itch, skin burns and snake bites. The bark yields a dye.

Production and international trade

The export of machang is not very important, except from Borneo, from where fairly large amounts are exported. In 1987, the export of round logs of machang from Sabah was 40 000 m³with a value of US$ 2.5 million; in 1992, the export was 38 000 m³(57% as sawn timber, 43% as logs) with a total value of US$ 5.7 million (US$ 205/m³for sawn timber and US$ 77/m³for logs). Japan imports small amounts of machang timber from Sabah and Sarawak.

Properties

Machang is a lightweight to medium-weight hardwood. The heartwood is pale yellowish-brown or pinkish-brown to dark pinkish-brown or reddish-brown, sometimes with silvery lustre and mottled figure; black streaks are sometimes present in the heartwood. Thesapwood is usually indistinctly demarcated from the heartwood, but is sometimes distinctly demarcated when streaked heartwood is present. The density is (410-)450-800 kg/m³at 15% moisture content. The grain is straight to interlocked or wavy, texture moderately fine to moderately coarse and even.

At 12% moisture content, the modulus of rupture is 88.5-90(-110) N/mm², modulus of elasticity 10 900-14 300(-15 400) N/mm², compression parallel to grain 43-51.5(-55) N/mm², compression perpendicular to grain c. 6 N/mm², shear 9-13(-14) N/mm², cleavage c. 60.5 N/mm tangential and Janka side hardness 4360-4860(-6250) N.

The rates of shrinkage are small to medium: from green to 15% moisture content 0.9-1.2% radial and 1.8-1.9% tangential, from green to 12% moisture content c. 1.8% radial and 3.1% tangential, and from green to oven dry c. 3.0% radial and 4.9% tangential. The wood dries fairly rapidly with slight seasoning defects; it is sometimes subject to cupping or bowing, and it may be liable to staining. Boards 12 mm thick take 2-3 months to air dry, boards 25 mm thick take 2.5-3.5 months and boards 40 mm thick take 3-4 months. The wood kiln dries easily by fairly fast schedules; in Malaysia kiln schedule F is recommended. It is stable in service.

The wood saws fairly well, although excessive tension wood may cause jamming and extreme woolliness in some logs. It is generally easy to plane, with smooth tangential surfaces but often rough radial surfaces. Slight picking-up of grain is common when planing, turning and moulding wavy-grained wood. The wood is difficult to easy to bore and mortises well, but it shows scratches from sanding unless a fine grit is used for the final finish. Filling is required to obtain good results in finishing and polishing. The resistance to splitting when nailed is rated as excellent. A test in Malaysia showed moderately good results for peeling: veneers of 0.8 mm and 1.6 mm could be produced easily, but they had a tendency to curl and wrinkle during drying; the gluability was rated as satisfactory.

Machang wood is classified as non-durable under exposed conditions or in contact with the ground. In graveyard tests in Malaysia untreated stakes of M. foetida lasted less than 2 years. The wood is liable to subterranean and drywood termite attack and fungal attack and during seasoning sometimes also to powder-post beetle attack. Both sapwood and heartwood are, however, easy to moderately easy to treat with preservatives. In Malaysia, an absorption of 320 kg/m³was obtained for M. indica wood using an open tank treatment and an equal mixture of creosote and diesel fuel; for M. foetida wood the absorption was 128 kg/m³. Treated wood is very durable.

Wood of M. altissima contains 54% cellulose, 31% lignin and 0.7% ash. The solubility is 2.2% in cold water, 5.2% in hot water and 13.5% in a 1% NaOH solution.

The sap from the bark of several species has irritant properties; fruits sometimes also contain an irritant exudate. The main irritating constituent is an allergenic urushiol, 5-heptadecenylresorcinol.

Description

Medium-sized to large, evergreen but sometimes deciduous trees up to 45(-54) m tall, usually with straight long clear bole, branchless for up to 25 m and up to 120(-150) cm in diameter; buttresses usually absent (sometimes very small buttresses present, rarely up to 2 m tall); bark surface smooth in young trees, later becoming longitudinally fissured, inner bark with strong turpentine odour, yellowish, pinkish, orange or reddish to brownish, with colourless, white or reddish-brown exudate drying brown or black; crown dense, usually rounded; twigs smooth, cylindrical or sharply angled, dark green (drying blackish or reddish-brown), often with large leaf scars. Leaves arranged spirally, often clustered towards the apex of twigs, simple, entire, usually glabrous, often with long petioles swollen at base; stipules absent; young leaves periodically flushing, pendulous, yellowish to brownish-purple. Inflorescence pseudo-terminal and/or axillary, paniculate, pyramidal or conical in outline; main peduncle often thick and stout (but sometimes not developed and then side branches all crowded at the base of the inflorescence), varying in colour from white to pale green or violet-red. Flowers small, male or bisexual (both types present on the same tree), 4-merous or 5-merous, often sweet scented, usually short-pedicelled, pedicel with articulation at base; sepals free, usually acute and rather stiff, puberulous or glabrous, green, yellow or red; petals imbricate in bud, free or rarely slightly connate at base, much longer than sepals, white, yellowish, pink or red, often changing in colour after anthesis, with ridges (mostly yellow) confluent at base on the inner side (forming a tree-like structure), tips of ridges often free of petal surface and gland-like, petals usually reflexed where ridges end; disk present, extrastaminal, rarely intrastaminal, cushion-shaped, papillose and more or less distinctly divided into 4-5 lobes, or narrow and stalk-like and not distinctly papillose; stamens usually 4-5, rarely 10, often 1-2(-5) fertile and the others reduced, free or filaments united at base, anthers dorsifixed, 2-locular and longitudinally introrsely dehiscent; ovary superior, seated on the disk, asymmetrical, 1-locular with one anatropous ovule, style 1, usually lateral, with small stigma; male flowers with 1-5 fertile stamens (often 1), other stamens staminodal, and with a completely abortive or much-reduced pistil; bisexual flowers slightly larger than male flowers, with 1 or more fertile stamens, staminodes present or absent, and with a well-developed pistil. Fruit a kidney-shaped, globose or cylindrical drupe, with fleshy pulp (in cultivars thick and sweet) andwoody or fibrous stone. Seed with plano-convex cotyledons, sometimes strongly folded ("labyrinthine"), albumen lacking. Seedling mostly with hypogeal germination, cotyledons usually non-emergent, hypocotyl very occasionally slightly elongated, first two leaves opposite, subsequent leaves arranged spirally.

Wood anatomy

Macroscopic characters:

Heartwood pale yellowish-brown to reddish-brown, darkening on exposure, not clearly demarcated from the pale yellowish-brown sapwood. Grain somewhat wavy. Texture moderately coarse; freshly cut wood scentless. Growth rings indistinct or absent; vessels visible to the naked eye, locally filled with a dark red-brown mass, tyloses rather abundant; banded parenchyma distinct; rays only conspicuous (brown deposits in cells) on radial surfaces; resin ducts and ripple marks absent.

Microscopic characters:

Growth ring boundaries indistinct, marked by marginal parenchyma bands, or absent. Vessels diffuse, 3(-4)/mm², solitary and less often in radial multiples of 2-3, rarely in clusters, round to oval, average tangential diameter 100-200μm; perforation plates simple; intervessel pits dense, alternate, polygonal, 8-11μm; vessel-ray and vessel-parenchyma pits less numerous, large, half-bordered to almost simple, 8-25μm; dark reddish-brown deposits locally present; tyloses commonly present. Fibres 600-800μm long, non-septate, thin-walled to thick-walled, with numerous, small, slit-like, simple pits almost entirely confined to the radial walls. Axial parenchyma paratracheal, banded and rarely apotracheally diffuse; paratracheal parenchyma vasicentric to slightly winged-aliform, vasicentric parenchyma one to several layers thick where vessels are not bordering upon rays; banded parenchyma irregularly zonate, 1-8(-20) cells wide, also marginal, in 2-4-celled strands. Rays 6-9/mm, 1-3-seriate (3-seriate rays rarely present), up to 10-15(-25) cells high, almost entirely composed of procumbent body cells and only 1(-3) rows of square and/or upright marginal cells. Crystals prismatic, in ray parenchyma cells, sometimes in axial parenchyma cells; usually one crystal per cell, but in ray parenchyma cells also 2(-3) per cell, especially in marginal cells; yellowish-brown contents present in ray parenchyma cells, less frequently in axial parenchyma cells. Silica absent. Radial intercellular canals absent or present, axial intercellular canals absent.

Species studied: M. foetida , M. gedebe , M. indica , M. laurina , M. mucronulata , M. odorata .

Growth and development

The early growth of machang seedlings is rapid. A bare stem of 20-30 cm is formed shortly after germination. An average height of 2-4 m can be attained three years after planting. The crown is usually dense, rounded and dark green. In old trees it may become more open and irregular. Most species are evergreen. They grow in flushes, simultaneously losing most of the older leaves and forming new leaves at the top of the branches. Commonly, flushes on different parts of a crown are out of phase. Some species (e.g. M. caesia , M. pajang ) are deciduous, standing bare for some time before shedding the very large bud scales that envelop new twigs and inflorescences.

The architecture of M. indica is according to Scarrone's model: an orthotropic, rhythmically growing, indeterminate trunk bearing tiers of branches; the branches are orthotropic and sympodially branched as a result of terminal or pseudo-terminal flowering. However, in full sunlight the architectural model conforms to Leeuwenberg's model, because of the early abortion of the apical meristem; equivalent orthotropic modules develop, each module determined in its growth.

Individual trees often flower irregularly; some trees do not flower for periods of 10-20 years, sometimes even longer. When flowering, however, trees may produce masses of flowers. Flowering starts at the beginning of the rainy season and fruits ripen at the end of the rainy season. The pollinators of M. indica are insects such as flies, nectarivorous bats and possibly thrips. Usually, only a small proportion of the flowers develops into fruits. The fruits are eaten and dispersed by hornbills, monkeys, elephants and porcupines. Bats also feed on the fruits and are said to actually disperse the seeds. The often comparatively large numbers of Mangifera trees found in the forest close to villages show that man may serve as a disperser by bringing home the fruits found in the forest and throwing away the stones later. The fruits of M. gedebe with their labyrinthine seeds float and can be dispersed by water.

Other botanical information

Within the family Anacardiaceae , Mangifera is classified in the tribe Anacardieae together with Anacardium , Androtium , Bouea , Buchanania , Gluta and Swintonia .

Mangifera is subdivided into two subgenera (or considered as sections): subgenus Mangifera with large and cushion-like disk and filaments free at base, and subgenus Limus (Marchand) Kosterm. with narrow, stalk-like disk and filaments often united at base. M. caesia , M. decandra , M. foetida , M. lagenifera , M. leschenaultii , M. macrocarpa , M. odorata and M. pajang belong to the latter section.

The delimitation of species within the genus Mangifera is often vague. Herbarium specimens arecomparatively scarce, as they are difficult to collect from these large trees with long clear boles which often flower and fruit at long intervals. Fruits are difficult to dry and are often lacking in herbarium material. Moreover, several species are unknown in natural forest and exist only in cultivation or semi-cultivation. Perhaps it would be better to consider these species to be cultivars. Other species do occur in the wild but have also been cultivated for centuries; the cultivated specimens sometimes differ considerably from the wild specimens as a result of selection. Some species have naturalized in regions outside their natural area of distribution.

The conception of the species differs considerably between the various taxonomists. The treatment of the species as presented here is mainly based on the new monograph of Kostermans & Bompard (1993) and differs from Prosea 2: "Edible fruits and nuts"(1991).

The wood of M. sylvatica Roxb. is used in India, e.g. for plywood, and that of M. caloneura Kurz is used in Indo-China, e.g. for boards.

Ecology

Most Mangifera species occur in lowland rain forest up to 700 m altitude, but several species can be found above 1000 m. Some species (e.g. M. griffithii , M. merrillii , M. parvifolia ) are more or less confined to wetter locations such as river banks or temporarily inundated land. Trees rarely occur gregariously (e.g. M. gedebe in swamp forest), instead they are usually widely scattered in the forest.

Mango ( M. indica ) trees are preferably cultivated up to 600 m altitude in the tropics, although they can be found up to 1200 m. A prominent dry season lasting more than 3 months is necessary for good fruit production. The trees are drought-tolerant, but need a deep soil. Machang trees probably all prefer shade, at least in the early stages of development.

Propagation and planting

Machang can be propagated by seed, handled and sown with the enveloping stone. Major fruit-producing species are also propagated vegetatively, e.g. by grafting on rootstock of the same or other Mangifera species and by budding. Stones rapidly lose their viability and are considered recalcitrant. At temperatures below 3-6C seed is damaged by chilling. Desiccation below 30% moisture content will kill seed of M. indica . Wet storage of stones of M. indica at 15C is possible, but germinating seed develops roots about 5 cm long and shoots about 8 cm long after 6 months. The germination rate of fresh stones is high, generally over 80%. Germination varies greatly between species and may take up to 5 weeks. Sowing complete fruits or stones with the pulp attached delays germination by up to 7 weeks and germination rate is only 30-50%. Preferably, large and fully developed stones should be sown. Careful removal of the endocarp, releasing the seed, results in earlier and more uniform germination, producing seedlings with a straight stem and roots. However, often this method is not feasible for the commercial production of planting stock. Stones should be sown under shade and seedlings also require a certain amount of shade. Seedlings raised in nursery beds can be transplanted without much difficulty before the taproot has developed to any great extent. However, seedlings raised in baskets or containers are preferable. In India, M. sylvatica survives stump planting well (80% survival). There are no reports of machang being planted for timber.

Silviculture and management

Natural regeneration of machang is abundant. Because of its dense crown, M. indica shades out grasses and will provide an effective firebreak. In Peninsular Malaysia, M. foetida is the most important representative of the machang trade group found scattered in natural forest.

Diseases and pests

Anthracnose ( Glomerella cingulata , conidial stage Colletotrichum gloeosporioides ) is a serious fungal attack of M. indica . A longicorn beetle ( Rhytidodera simulans ) bores into the trunk and thick branches; branches may be killed, but the whole tree retains its viability. The larvae of the mango weevil ( Cryptorrhynchus mangiferae ) feed on the pulp and damage the fruits.

Harvesting

Machang logs usually show some spongy heart. The darker heartwood of typical machang logs from Peninsular Malaysia of 60 cm diameter was 38 cm in diameter, thus the sapwood on either side was 11 cm thick. The sapwood of M. altissima is also rather thick, about 10-15 cm. The sap of the bark of some species, particularly M. caesia , is poisonous and may cause serious skin and eye irritation. Therefore, labourers should be protected with gloves and clothing that covers the whole body.

Yield

Because machang trees occur scattered, the yield from natural forest is generally low. In a forest in South Kalimantan, the average number of machang trees was 1.1/ha, with an average timber volume of 2.5 m³/ha.

Genetic resources

Although many Mangifera species occur very scattered in the forest, they are generally not rare and often have large areas of distribution. Most species do not seem particularly liable to genetic erosion. However, M. altissima is considered to be a vanishing timber species in the Philippines. Machang timber is only selectively logged and traded on a larger scale very locally.

Several species, as well as cultivars of M. indica , have been planted in germplasm collections in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, India and northern Australia.

Breeding

No breeding work directed towards timber production and quality is known to be inprogress. Polyembryony in mango and apomixis in cultivated Mangifera species suggest that it would be feasible to raise genetically identical material. Current breeding objectives are directed towards fruit production in M. indica : dwarf tree size, quality of the fruit, regular and good cropping, and resistance to diseases and pests.

Prospects

Mangifera trees are planted and tended primarily for their fruits. However, they may also yield good-quality timber; the streaked heartwood is especially in demand for furniture and nicely figured veneer. More intensive crop management resulting in higher fruit yield reduces the tree size and the eventual quantity of timber. Therefore, it is unrealistic to aim for a combination of high productivity of fruits and timber. The establishment of timber plantations of machang with limited fruit production might give promising results. Selection and breeding activities combined with proper propagation techniques might result in planting stock suitable for multipurpose plantations.

Literature

Angeles, D.E., 1991. Mangifera altissima Blanco. In: Verheij, E.W.M. & Coronel, R.E. (Editors): Plant Resources of South-East Asia No 2. Edible fruits and nuts. Pudoc, Wageningen. pp. 206-207.
Bompard, J.M., 1991. Mangifera caesia Jack, Mangifera kemanga Blume; Mangifera foetida Lour., Mangifera pajang Kosterm.; Mangifera laurina Blume, Mangifera pentandra Hook.f.; Mangifera odorata Griffith. In: Verheij, E.W.M. & Coronel, R.E. (Editors): Plant Resources of South-East Asia No 2. Edible fruits and nuts. Pudoc, Wageningen. pp. 207-211, 216-220.
Chin, H.F., 1980. Germination. In: Chin, H.F. & Roberts, E.H. (Editors): Recalcitrant seed crops. Tropical Press, Kuala Lumpur. pp. 38-52.
Gruèzo, W.Sm., 1991. Mangifera L. In: Verheij, E.W.M. & Coronel, R.E. (Editors): Plant Resources of South-East Asia No 2. Edible fruits and nuts. Pudoc, Wageningen. pp. 203-206.
Hou, D., 1978. Anacardiaceae. In: van Steenis, C.G.G.J. (Editor): Flora Malesiana. Ser. 1, Vol. 8. Sijthoff & Noordhoff International Publishers, Alphen aan den Rijn. pp. 395-548.
Kochummen, K.M., 1989. Anacardiaceae. In: Ng, F.S.P. (Editor): Tree flora of Malaya. A manual for foresters. Vol. 4. Forest Research Institute Malaysia. Longman Malaysia SDN. Berhad, Kuala Lumpur. pp. 9-57.
Kostermans, A.J.G.H. & Bompard, J.-M., 1993. The mangoes. Their botany, nomenclature, horticulture and utilization. International Board for Plant Genetic Resources and Linnean Society of London. Academic Press, London. 233 pp.
Lopez, D.T., 1982. Malaysian timbers - machang. Malaysian Forest Service Trade Leaflet No 68. Malaysian Timber Industry Board, Kuala Lumpur. 8 pp.
Meniado, J.A., Tamolang, F.N., Lopez, F.R., America, W.M. & Alonzo, D.S., 1975. Wood identification handbook for Philippine timbers. Vol. 1. Government Printing Office, Manila. pp. 23-32.
Sukonthasing, S., Wongrakpanich, M. & Verheij, E.W.M., 1991. Mangifera indica L. In: Verheij, E.W.M. & Coronel, R.E. (Editors): Plant Resources of South-East Asia No 2. Edible fruits and nuts. Pudoc, Wageningen. pp. 211-216.