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Cordia alliodora
Boraginaceae FAMILY Least Concern

Cordia alliodora

Cordia alliodora

Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitSemi-deciduous Tree
Growth—

A tree of the lowland tropics, normally at elevations below 1,000 metres but occasionally found as high as 2,000 metres[1]. It grows best in areas where the annual rainfall exceeds 2,000mm, but will also perform reasonably well with an annual rainfall as low as 750mm[1]. It prefers a mean annual temperature of around 24°c[1]. Plants are tolerant of a range of soil types, preferring moist but freely draining fertile soils[1]. It is particularly suitable for calcareous soils in the more humid tropics[1]. Growth on degraded soils and on sites with poor drainage is reduced[1]. Requires a position in full sun[2]. Plants are fairly tolerant of very windy conditions, showing less damage when exposed to hurricane winds than most species[1]. The tree has been introduced into several areas for forestry. Its seeds are carried by the wind and the plant has escaped from cultivation in some of these areas and is showing every sign of becoming a problem[3]. The crushed leaves and the fresh bark smell of garlic[4, 5]. The small, white flowers are fragrant[6]. A fast-growing tree, on suitable sites, with good management, an annual height increase of 2 metres, coupled with 2 cm increase in diameter may be obtained during the first 10 years[1]. A height of 30 - 40 metres and diameter of 40 - 55 cm at breast height are predicted for rotations of 20 - 25 years[1]. Seedlings develop a strong taproot. Later, spreading roots also develop which may grow into buttresses[1]. Flowering may start when the trees are only 2 years old, but more commonly between 5 - 10 years after planting[1]. Plants can flower all year round when growing near the equator, but become seasonal when growing further away[7]. Because of its abundant nectar, bees are strongly attracted to this plant[4]. The tree has a high degree of self-incompatibility[1]. Trees form a mutualistic relationship with various species of small biting ants. Swellings, known as domatia, are formed naturally at the ends of branches. These swellings are filled with a loose pithy material that is presumably easily removed by the ants who then live in the swellings and can act to deter pests from the tree[1].. The mature fruit is shed with the withered flower still attached, which acts as a parachute during fruit fall, possibly assisting wind dispersal[1]. When harvesting seed for propagation it is important to only harvest mature seed. This is best done by shaking the branches to allow mature seed with a high viability rate to drop off[1]. Young to middle-aged trees coppice readily and suckers are sometimes abundant[1]. The bole is generally straight and cylindrical and often clear of branches 50 - 60% of the total tree height, even in open, uncrowded conditions[1]. When grown as a shade tree in plantations, this species reduces the yield of the main crop, such as cocoa, but the extra income generated from the timber eventually compensates for this yield reduction[1].

Propagation

Seed - the hard seed needs scarifying by lightly abrading the seedcoat before sowing[4]. Germination usually takes place in 5 - 20 days with up to 80% of the seed germinating[1]. The seed can be sown in trays, transplanting the seedlings when they are about 3 weeks old to nursery beds[7]. They are planted out into their permanent positions about 6 months later[7]. The seed has a short viability under natural conditions; but dried to below 10% moisture it may be stored at 2°c for up to 10 years[1]. Cuttings. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Cordia+alliodora>

Pollinators

Lepidoptera, Bees

References

  1. [1]Plant Resources of Southeast Asia — http://proseanet.org/ ↩︎Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
  2. [2]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  3. [3]Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk — http://www.hear.org/pier/scientificnames/index.html ↩︎A very good website detailing weed species that have been introduced into the Pacific Islands.
  4. [4]Tropical and Subtropical Trees - A Worldwide Encyclopaedic Guide. — Barwick. M. · Thames & Hudson, London · 2004 · ISBN 0-500-51181-0 ↩︎A superb book, very concise and well written, giving a wealth of information on 400 or more species including descriptions, habitat, cultivation details and plant uses. A wealth of colour photographs bring each plant vividly to life.
  5. [5]Trees and Shrubs of Mexico — Standley P.C. · Smithsonian Institution; Washington · 1926 ↩︎Although dated, it contains a wealth of information on the trees and shrubs of Mexico, including many of their uses. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
  6. [6]Woods of Northeastern Peru — Williams L. · Field Museum Press; Chicago. · 1936 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/ ↩︎Gives information on the properties of the wood of well over 1,000 species of woody plants from northeastern Peru. Can be downloaded from the Internet.
  7. [7]Seed Leaflets — Various · Forest & Landscape. Denmark · http://en.sl.life.ku.dk/Publikationer/Udgivelser/PopulaerPublikationer.aspx?katid={D28373CC-6EF3-4EF8-B097-6D83FABF209E}&serieid={9F1C3DB1-6E7B-4CF1-AF53-F480B0CB40EF}&sort=title ↩︎A series of leaflets, jointly produced by the University of Copenhagen and the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, focussing on seed information for a number species, but also giving a lot of other information about each plant.
  8. [8]Brazilian Trees. Volume 2. 4th Edition. — Lorenzi. H. · Instituto Plantarum De Estudos Da Flora; Brazil. · 2002 · ISBN 85-86714-15-1 ↩︎Information on 350 species of Brazilian trees. Stunning photographs of each species, brief details on the plant, its uses and how to grow it from seed. A superb work, with the minor irritation that the translation from Portuguese is not of the best.
  9. [9]Flora of Guatemala — Standley P.C. & J. A. Steyermark · 1946 - 1976 · http://www.archive.org/ ↩︎A superb reference, though somewhat dated. Gives lots of plant uses as well as information on plant habit and habitat. The entire flora (13 volumes) can now be downloaded from http://www.archive.org/
  10. [10]Tree Species of Panama — http://ctfs.arnarb.harvard.edu/webatlas/mainframe.php?order=s ↩︎Factsheets on all the tree and shrub species of Panama, giving identification guide, brief guide to the species and some uses. A vast, but rather incomplete work as of 15/07/09.
  11. [11]Dictionary of Economic Plants. — Uphof. J. C. Th. · Weinheim · 1959 · ISBN - ↩︎An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
  12. [12]Mansfeld's Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Plants — http://mansfeld.ipk-gatersleben.de/pls/htmldb_pgrc/f?p=185:3:4292127278597336 ↩︎Terse details of a huge range of useful plants.
  13. [13]IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — http://www.iucnredlist.org/ ↩︎A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat.
  14. [14]Cornucopia II — Facciola. S. · Kampong Publications, California. · 1998 · ISBN 0-9628087-2-5 ↩︎The second edition of an excellent guide to the edible uses of plants, though it does not give any details of cultivation etc.
  15. [15]Perennial Edible Fruits of the Tropics : an Inventory — Martin, F. W.; Campbell, C. W.; Rubertbe, R. M. · U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service · 1987 ↩︎A booklet giving terse details of almost 300 species of edible fruits, plus regional lists of Botanical and Common names for over 2,500 less well-known edible fruits of the tropics.
  16. [16]Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden. Vol 75 — Missouri Botanical Garden: Boston. · 1988 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org ↩︎Contains, amongst other things, an article on the flora of Tanzania, a treatment of the genus Xyris and one for the Panamanian Boraginaceae. It can be downloaded from the internet.
  17. [17]Traditional uses, phytochemistry and pharmacology of the medicinal species of the genus Cordia (Boraginaceae) — Oza M.J. & Kulkarni Y.A. · 2017 · http://10.1111/jphp.12715 ↩︎
  18. [18]Technical Information on 134 Species of Bolivian Woods — USDA Forest Service -- Forest Products Lab · USDA Forest Service · http://www2.fpl.fs.fed.us/publications/ ↩︎A PDF file, available for download. Exactly what the title says, brief and to the point.