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Pterocarpus marsupium
Fabaceae FAMILY Near Threatened

Pterocarpus marsupium

Pterocarpus marsupium

Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
3/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitDeciduous Tree
Growth—

A plant found mainly of lowland tropical areas, found at elevations from 200 - 500 metres, but exceptionally to 1,200 metres[1]. It grows best in areas where the mean annual temperature falls within the range 22 - 34°c, but can tolerate 4 - 47°c[1]. It is found in areas where there is a distinct dry season, preferring a mean annual rainfall of 1,000 - 1,500mm, but tolerating 750 - 2,000mm[1]. Requires a sunny position in a well drained soil[1]. Grows best in a deep, rich, light to medium soil[1]. Prefers a pH in the range 6 - 7, but tolerates 5.5 - 7.5[1]. This species is one of several that supply a red resin from their stem. This resin, often known as 'Dragon's Blood' is often used as an external application to treat a range of skin problems and injuries[2]. Dragon's Blood can be obtained from several species in this genus, as well as from three other distinct genera - Dracaena species, Croton species and Daemonorops species[2] This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria, these bacteria form nodules on the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be used by other plants growing nearby[3].

Propagation

Seed - Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Pterocarpus+marsupium>

Pollinators

Data unavailable

References

  1. [1]Ecocrop — http://ecocrop.fao.org/ecocrop/srv/en/home ↩︎Basic information on a wide range of useful plants, plus details of environmental needs where available.
  2. [2]A Systematic Review of the Botanical, Phytochemical and Pharmacological Profile of Dracaena cochinchinensis, a Plant — Jia-Yi Fan et al · 2014 · http://10.3390/molecules190710650 · ISBN 1420-3049 ↩︎
  3. [3]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.
  4. [4]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.
  5. [5]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.
  6. [6]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.
  7. [7]A Manual of Indian Timbers. — Gamble. J. S. · Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh · 1972 · ISBN - ↩︎First written in the 19th century, but still a classic, giving a lot of information on the uses and habitats of Indian trees. Not for the casual reader.
  8. [8]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.
  9. [9]The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants — Chevallier. A. · Dorling Kindersley. London · 1996 · ISBN 9-780751-303148 ↩︎An excellent guide to over 500 of the more well known medicinal herbs from around the world.
  10. [10]Handbook of Ayurvedic Medicinal Plants — Kapoor. L. D. · CRC Press, Florida. · 2001 · ISBN 0-8493-2929-9 ↩︎A very detailed book on some of the key Ayurvedic herbs, giving both technical and non-technical information on each plant. The whole is very well referenced.
  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]Economic Products of India. Volume 1. — Watt. G. · Government of India: Calcutta. · 1883 ↩︎Although over 100 years old, it still contains a wealth of information on useful plants. Many of the botanical names have been changed since then, so you have to check for up to date names. The book can be downloaded from the Internet.
  13. [13]CosIng — http://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/ ↩︎CosIng is the European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients.