Neolamarckia cadamba
Neolamarckia cadamba
Safety & Hazards
None known
Cultivation Details
A plant of the moister tropics, it grows well at an altitude range of 300 - 800 metres[1]. It prefers a mean annual temperature of around 23°c and is sensitive to frost[1]. It grows best with a mean annual rainfall of around 1,600mm or more, but can tolerate dry areas with as little as 200mm of rain[1, 2]. Prefers well drained entisols[1]. It does not grow well on leached and poorly aerated soils[1]. Older trees require good light conditions, the saplings, however, require the protection of some shade from the hot sun[1]. Trees are sensitive to frost, drought and excessive moisture[1]. Trees can tolerate periodic flooding[2]. Young trees usually grow fast for the first 6 - 8 years, commencing flowering around the age of 4 years[1]. When grown for timber, they are usually felled at around the age of 10 - 15 years[1]. The tree coppices well[1]. The fragrant orange flowers attract insect pollinators[1].
Propagation
Seed - best sown in a nursery - direct sowing is not very successful because of the small-sized seeds and the their sensitivity to drought, excessive moisture and direct sun[1]. The epigeous germination begins in about 10 - 14 days in the rainy season[1]. When the seedlings are 8 - 12 weeks old, they are transplanted to nursery beds or plastic bags. It is recommended to use a medium that is enriched with organic matter[2]. After 6 - 7 months, when the seedlings are about 30cm tall, they are ready for transplanting into the field. They can be planted bare-rooted with little loss in survival rate[2]. The young seedlings are highly susceptible to weeds and should be weeded regularly. 2-month seedlings can be transplanted in nursery beds or into polythene bags, where they can be retained before planting at the start of the monsoon rains. To ensure successful establishment, seedlings should be planted out with their balls of earth[1]. Successful extraction of seed from ripe fruits involves air drying, crushing, and sieving through a No. 35 US Standard sieve to separate seed from chaff[1]. The fruits are first soaked in the open until rotted, then ground by hand into a thick slurry, air dried, and passed through a series of sieves terminating with a No. 35. This procedure improves seed purity up to 98%, and germination success[1]. Air layering. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Neolamarckia+cadamba>
Pollinators
Insects
References
- [1]World Agroforesty Centre — http://www.worldagroforestry.org/ ↩︎An excellent online database of a huge range of trees giving very good information on each plant - its uses, ecology, identity, propagation, pests etc.
- [2]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.
- [3]Flowers of India — http://www.flowersofindia.net/ ↩︎A wed site of native Indian plants, plus cultivated and naturalized species. It has good quality photos and terse details on more than 3,000 species and cultivars.