''Careya arborea'' is a species of tree in the Lecythidaceae family, native to the Indian subcontinent, Afghanistan, and Indochina. Its common English names include wild guava, Ceylon oak, patana oak. ''Careya arborea'' is a deciduous tree that grows up to high. Its leaves turn red in the cold season. Flowers are yellow or white in colour that become large green berries. The tree grows throughout India in forests and grasslands.

Common names

*Assamese - Godhajam কুম Kum, kumari, কুম্ভী kumbhi * Bengali - Vakamba, Kumhi, Kumbhi * Burmese - ''ban bwe'' (ဘန့်ပွေး) * Garo - Dimbil bol * Hindi - कुम्भी Kumbhi * Kannada - alagavvele, daddal, Koulu mara * Khasi - Ka Mahir, Soh Kundur * Khmer - Kandaol (កណ្ដោល) * Malayalam - പേഴ് Peezh, Peelam, Pela, Paer, Alam * Marathi - कुम्भा Kumbha * Oriya - Kumbh * Sanskrit - Bhadrendrani, गिरिकर्णिका Girikarnika, Kaidarya, कालिंदी Kalindi * Sinhala - Kahata * Tamil - பேழை Peezhai, Aima, Karekku, Puta-tanni-maram * Telugu - araya, budatadadimma, budatanevadi, buddaburija * Thai - kradone (กระโดน) * Vietnamese - Vừng (sometimes Vừng xoan)

Uses

In colonial times in India, the fibrous bark of this tree was found to be an ideal substitute for

beech Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engle ...

bark as matches for matchlocks. The ''Careya arborea'' leaves are traditionally used to roll cheroots in Myanmar (Burma). The town of

Pyay Pyay (, ; mnw, ပြန် , ; also known as Prome and Pyè) is principal town of Pyay Township in the Bago Region in Myanmar. Pyay is located on the bank of the Irrawaddy River, north-west of Yangon. It is an important trade center for the Aye ...

(formerly Prome) is known for a local delicacy known as '' taw laphet'' (; ) or '' laphet'' () that is tightly packed in parcel-like ''Careya arborea'' leaves for fermentation and preservation purposes. Flowers and young leaves are eaten as salad greens in Thailand. Young fruit is reported to be edible, though seeds are slightly poisonous.

Gallery

File:Careya arborea (Wild guava)fruit in Narsapur forest, AP W IMG 0148.jpg, Fruit in Narsapur, Medak district, India. File:Careya arborea (Wild guava) leaves in Narsapur forest, AP W IMG 0153.jpg, Fruit with leaves in Narsapur, Medak district, India. File:Careya arborea (Wild guava) leaves in Narsapur forest, AP W IMG 0150.jpg, Leaves in Narsapur, Medak district, India. File:Careya arborea (Wild guava) in Narsapur forest, AP W IMG 0152.jpg, Trunk in Narsapur, Medak district, India. File:Grey Count (Tanaecia lepidea) caterpillar on Careya arborea W IMG_2390.jpg, Grey Count '' Tanaecia lepidea'' caterpillar on ''Careya arborea'' sapling in Goa, India.

References

Lecythidaceae Flora of Asia Trees of Nepal Inflorescence vegetables {{Lecythidaceae-stub

Common names

Uses

Gallery

See also

References