Cashew (Anacardium occidentale)

The Cashew tree is naive to northern Brazil. 

The Cashew tree is an evergreen tree that grows to about 10 to 12m tall. It has an irregularly-shaped trunk and spreading crown. It has prominent tap roots and a well-developed and extensive network of lateral roots and sinker roots when grown from seed. The large leaves are simple and alternate, up to 20cm long and 15cm wide. They are leathery in texture and pale green or reddish when young, turning dark green upon maturing.

The flowers produced by the Cashew tree are numerous and in panicles. They are small and pale green or reddish in colour with 5 sepals and 5 petals no more than 2cm. 

The fruit of the Cashew tree is considered an accessory fruit or false fruit. The pear-shaped structure that appears to be the fruit is actually developed from the pedicel and the receptacle of the Cashew flower. About 10 to 20cm long, this structure is also known as the Cashew Apple, and is yellow or red in colour. The Cashew Apple is edible and has a sweet juicy pulp and sweet smell. 

The true fruit of the Cashew tree is the kidney-shaped drupe that grows at the end of the Cashew Apple. The drupe develops first, followed by the expanded pedicel which becomes the Cashew apple. Inside the drupe is where the "Cashew nut" is found. Though commonly referred to as a "nut", it is actually the seed of the fruit. The seed is surrounded by a double shell which contains toxins similar to those found in poison ivy. Roasting the cashews properly will be able to destroy the toxin.

Chiku (Achras sapota, Manilkara zapota)

Commonly known for its Malay name the Chiku, this fruit is native to southern Mexco, Central America and the Caribbean.

Chiku comes from a medium-sized evergreen tree that grows upright with a dense, pyramidal crown. The bark of the tree is produces a white, gummy latex substance called chicle. The alternate leaves are thick and glossy green and about 7 to 15cm long. The white flowers that are borne at the leaf bases are are small and inconspicuous with a bell-like shape.

The chiku fruit is a large berry, about 4 to 8cm in diameter. The skin is a dull brown to grey colour that is slightly rough, while the colour of the flesh ranges from pale yellow to earthy brown. The flesh of the chiku has a grainy texture. Each fruit contains about 2 to 5 hard black seeds that have a hook on one end. The fruits have high latex content and does not ripen until after picking. Due to the high amounts of saponin in the unripe fruit, it is hard and has astringent properties that dry out the mouth when consumed. Chikus are generally moist and sweet with a malty flavour and eaten fresh.

Caryota mitis

Commonly known as Fishtail Palm, this palm is native to India, Sri Lanka, and Southeast Asia.

Growing up to about 8m, the Fishtail Palm grows in dense clusters that can reach across 4m at its widest. The trunks of the palm are light green to graying in colour with widely spaced leaf nodes. 

The leaves of the Fishtail Palm are bipinnate and triangular with a fishtail shape, by which its common name is derived from. 

The Fishtail Palm has a unique flowering habit whereby the inflorescence develops from the top of the trunk first followed by subsequent bunches moving downwards. The palm will die once it reaches is final seeding. The flowers are a pale cream colour, while the small 1 to 2cm fruits are reddish-orange in colour. The fruit contains crystal oxalate which my irritate the eyes and skin. 

Ficus fistulosa

Commonly known as Yellow Stem Fig, it is native to countries from northeastern India, southern China to New Guinea, Borneo, Sarawak, Sabah, and East-Kalimantan.

This evergreen tree is medium-sized, growing to about 10 to 15m to form a loosely arranged crown. It has a straight trunk with smooth bark. The colour of the bark ranges from light grey to yellowish. The young twigs are hollow and easily broken to produce a white sap. 

The leaves of the Yellow Stem Fig are alternate and simple and have a leaf tip. The young leaves are pale pink in colour.

The figs are pear-shaped, about 2.5cm wide, and borne on long stalks in clusters. These originate from woody knows on the tree trunk or branches. When ripen, the fruits change colour from yellow to green-yellow. The flowers of the Yellow Stem Fig are found within the figs and monoecious, meaning that male and female flowers are found in figs of different trees.

Morinda citrifolia

Also known as Noni Tree, this tree is native to Australia, India, Indochina, and Southeast Asia. 

Noni is a small evergreen tree thats to about 5 to 9m tall. 

The dark and shiny leaves are large and simple. They are deeply veined.

The small and white flowers grow from a fleshy structure, blooming and fruity all year round. 

The fruits are about 4 to 7cm and have smelly pulp. They are green at first and turn light yellow or white when ripe. The fruit has numerous seeds.

This tree was first cultivated by the Polynesians and can be foundalong rivers and coastal habitats. The Noni fruit is extremely smelly when ripe and can be eaten or made into juice used to make dyes or fed to livestock. The tree is also useful for its antiseptic qualities and it is used in traditional medicine.

In Chinese medicine, it is used to contain fever and as a tonic. The plant is similarly used in Japan. A Southeast Asian plant, it is commonly used in native medicines of the region. In Malaysia, the heated leaves are applied to the chest and abdomen to treat coughs nausea, colic and enlarged spleen. In Philippines, the juice of the leaves is given for arthritis. In Indochina, the fruit are prescribed for lumbago, asthma and dysentery.

Xylocarpus granatum

The Nyireh Bunga or Mangrove Cannonball is native to countries from East Africa to tropical Asia, Papua New Guinea, and the Pacific Islands.

A small tree of about 3 to 8m, the Mangrove Cannonball is an evergreen mangrove tree. It has long and snaking buttresses. The bark is light brown, yellowish, and greenish in colour, and smooth and flaking. 

The leaves of the Mangrove Cannonball are simple pinnate and spirally arranged. The young leaves are light green while the old leaves are dark green in colour. The leaves turn orange red when withering. They are narrowly-shaped and have rounded tips. 

The small flowers at only 8mm are are fragrant with white petals.

The Mangrove Cannonball produced fruits in capsules as wide as 25cm. These capsules are woody and globose, splitting open into four valves to reveal 5 to 20 seeds. 

The wood of the Mangrove Cannonball is used in boat-building, furniture wood and firewood.

This species has phytoremediation potential, because it accumulates manganese, zinc, boron, iron and copper. The bark contains tannin, so used for dying cloths, tanning leather, toughening and preserving fishing nets. Hair oil can be made using oil extracted from the seeds. 

Rhizophora mucronata

Also known as Bakau Kurap, this mangrove tree is native to Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, Comoros, Djibouti, and Egypt.

Bakua Kurap is a small to medium-sized tree that can grow up to about 15m tall, though it only grows to about 3m only. Those closer to the sea grow taller while those closer inland tend to be shorter. The bark is a dark colour, almost black, and horizontally fissured. It has numerous aerial stilt roots that buttress the trunk.

The shiny green leaves are shaped like eyes at about 8 to 15cm long with an elongated tip. They are leathery and spottoed with tiny spots on the underside of the leaf. They have pale yellowish stipules present.

The brown fruits resemble upside-down pears about 3 to 4cm big and have small short sepals. The fruits are viviparous, meaning  they start to germinate while still on attached to the tree. The root will begin to elongate and may reach a length of about a metre long before the propagule detaches itself from the branch and takes root in the mud below.