⚠️IUCN Conservation Status
NOT EXTINCT
EX EW CR EN VU NT LC DD NE
🌳Names of the Tree
Vernacular Name/s: Dapdap, Linn, Coraltree
Scientific Name: Erythrina variegata
Family Name: Fabaceae
📜Details
Average Height: 18 - 25 meters
Average Length of Leaves: 2 - 28 centimeters
Timber Classification: Philippine Mahogany group
Propagation: Cuttings from mature tree
Where to Find: Erythrina variegata grows where annual rainfall ranges from 800 mm to 1,500 mm with an average temperature of 20-32°C. It does well where rainfall is distributed over a 5-6 month rainy season. It is drought tolerant and it can withstand waterlogging for up to 2 weeks. Coral tree prefers deep, well-drained, sandy loam, but tolerates a wide range of soil conditions, from sands to clays of pH 4.5 to 8.0. It is tolerant of fire.
Uses: a. Young, tender leaves and young sprouts eaten as vegetable, b. bark and leaves used as expectorant for medicine, c. used in agroforestry systems, d. fodder as its foliage has a good nutritive value for most livestock
Notable Features: Dapdap is a deciduous tree reaching a height of 15 meters, the branches and the branchlets stout and armed with short, few to many sharp prickles. Leaflets are broadly ovate and 8 to 18 centimeters long, with pointed tip and broad base. Racemes are terminal, hairy, dense, and up to 2.5 centimeters long.
Habit of Matured Tree
Fruit
Leaf
Phyllotaxy
Some Facts
The multipurpose Erythrina variegata tree is frequently utilized in agroforestry systems. Its leaf, which has a reasonably high protein content and is a great feed for most livestock, can be lopped for use as fodder. The young coral tree sprouts and leaves are used as vegetables in Indonesia. In industrial plantations with hedgerow intercropping systems, coral trees make effective windbreak and shade trees. Grape, betel, vanilla, pepper, yam (Dioscorea spp. ), and other vine crops are supported by and protected from the sun by coral trees. Coral trees are frequently grown as shade trees for cocoa and coffee in East Africa and tropical America. This approach is not advised in Java, though, as the tree cannot provide shade for the plantations because it is leafless for up to a few months out of the year. Following pollarding, the erect branches with a diameter of around 15 cm can be used as live fenceposts. Annual pollarding produces light, soft wood that can be utilized to produce pulp, picture frames, and packing boxes. The coral tree has medicinal uses in traditional Chinese and Indian medicine, where it is used to cure parasite infections and joint pain.
It is possible to effectively grow coral trees from seed or big stem cuttings. When growing plants from seeds, these should first be scarified by soaking in tepid water for the night after 10 minutes in hot water (80°C). They should begin to grow within 8 to 10 days, and after 10 weeks, well-watered seedlings should be prepared for planting. To avoid being attacked by soil fungi, woody cuttings should be planted in dry conditions (at least 24 hours without water before planting. Cuttings take hold fast, developing roots and axillary shoots in three to four weeks. It's crucial to keep the terminal bud on branch cuttings if you want to grow large trees with straight stems.
Coral trees offer shade and serve as an important windbreak to stop water and wind erosion. They aid in preserving soil cohesiveness and moisture under their canopy. Coral tree is a fast-growing legume that fixes nitrogen that is very beneficial for enriching soil. In both acidic and alkaline soils, it nodulates quickly and profusely. A notable source of organic materials for green manure is the coral tree. The litterfall quickly breaks down and gives plants with nutrients (between 1 and 3% N). The pollarded foliage is chopped and used as mulch on the soil in coffee and cocoa plantations.
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