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Diospyros pilosanthera
Ebenaceae FAMILY

Diospyros pilosanthera

Diospyros pilosanthera

Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitTree
Growth—

Found in the wild on ultrabasic, sandy and clayey soils, also often on limestone[1]. We have seen no individual confirmation for this species, but in general Diospyros species are dioecious and require both male and female forms to be grown if fruit and seed are required[2].

Propagation

Seed - it has a very short viability and so should be sown as soon as possible[3]. The flesh should be removed since this contains germination inhibitors[3]. Sow the seed in a shady position in a nursery seedbed. The sowing media for ebony uses soil and fine sand at the ratio 3:1. The seed is planted horizontally or vertically with the radicle end down, with a sowing depth of 1 - 1½ times the thickness of seed. Distance between the seeds is 3 - 5cm. Seeds are very sensitive to desiccation during germination and early growth, so must be regularly watered at this time[3]. Normally the seed will germinate after one week. In one trial, fresh seed, sown one day after collection, showed 85% germination rate within 17 - 65 days[3]. As a rule fresh seeds have a high percentage of fertility. The seedlings develop long taproots at an early stage, often before any appreciable elongation of the shoot takes place. The growth of the seedling is decidedly slow [4]. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Diospyros+pilosanthera>

Pollinators

Data unavailable

References

  1. [1]Trees of Sungai Wain — http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/Sungaiwain/ ↩︎An excellent site with factsheets on almost 1,000 species of forest trees growing at Sungai Wain in Indonesia. Each factsheet has good quality pictures plus basic information on the ecology and uses of the plants.
  2. [2]Tree Flora of Sabah and Sarawak Vols 1 - 6 — Soepadmo E.; Saw L.G.; Chung R.C.K. (Editors) · Forest Research Institute Malaysia; Kuala Lumpur. · 2002 · ISBN 983-2181-27-5 ↩︎A flora of the woody plants of Sabah and Sarawak on the island of Borneo, often giving details of plant uses.
  3. [3]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.
  4. [4]The Silviculture of Indian Trees — Troup. R.S. · Oxford, at the Clarendon Press · 1921 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org ↩︎An excellent treatment.
  5. [5]Commercial Woods of the Philippines; Their Preparation and Uses — Schneider E.E. · Bureau of Forestry; Manilla. · 1916 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org ↩︎A series of booklets dealing with various aspects of the Philippine forests. This volume looks at the preparation and uses of the commercial woods of the Philippines. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
  6. [6]The Hongmu Challenge; A briefing for the 66th meeting of the CITES Standing Committee, January 2016 — Environmental Investigation Agency; London · 2016 · http://www.eia-global.org ↩︎Lists the 33 species used in making Hungmu furniture and the degree of over-exploitation plus recommendations for protecting them.
  7. [7]Medicinal Plants of Asia and the Pacific — Wiart C. · CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group; Florida. · 2006 · ISBN 0-8493-7245-3 ↩︎An excellent look at a range of plants, in particular focussing on the active principles that could be responsible for the medical activities.
  8. [8]The Philippine Journal of Science. Vol. 4 — Freer P.C. (Editor) · The Bureau of Science, Philippines. · 1909 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org ↩︎A number of articles on Philippine plants, including one on the qualities of Philippine woods.
  9. [9]Strategies for the Sustaibable Use and Management of Timber Trees - SE Asia. — UNEP; Cambridge, UK. · 2007 · http://www.unep-wcmc.org/forest/timber/workshops/pdf/SEAsia_2007_V2.pdf ↩︎A draft document in PDF format, available on the Internet. It gives brief details on habitat, uses etc of over 100 species of trees from SE Aia.