| Portia Tree | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Rosids |
| Order: | Malvales |
| Family: | Malvaceae |
| Genus: | Thespesia |
| Species: | T. populnea |
| Binomial name | |
| Thespesia populnea (L.) Sol. ex Corrêa[1] |
|
Thespesia populnea, commonly known as the Portia Tree ( /ˈpɔərʃⁱə/), is species of flowering plant in the mallow family, Malvaceae. It is a small tree or arborescent shrub that has a pantropical distribution, found on coasts around the world. However, the Portia Tree is probably native only to the Old World,[2] and may have originated in India.[3] It is possibly indigenous to the Hawaiian Islands and elsewhere in the Pacific, but may have been spread by early Polynesians for its useful wood and bast fibres. The Portia Tree reaches a height of 6–10 m (20–33 ft) tall and a trunk diameter of 20–30 cm (7.9–12 in).[4] It grows at elevations from sea level to 275 m (902 ft)[5] in areas that receive 500–1,600 mm (20–63 in) of annual rainfall.[2] The Portia Tree is able to grow in the wide range of soil types that may be present in coastal environments, including soils derived from quartz (sand), limestone, and basalt; it favors neutral soils (pH of 6-7.4).[4]
Common names vary according to the country and include Indian Tulip Tree, Pacific Rosewood, Seaside Mahoe (in Florida), Surina (the "elegant tree"), Suriya (Sinhala), Bebaru or Baru baru (Malay), Milo or Miro (in many Polynesian languages), Makoʻi (Rapanui), Gangaraavi (Telugu), Poovarasu: பூவரசு (Tamil), Poovarasu: പൂവരശ് (Malayalam), PakuR (Bengali) and Plaksa (Sanskrit).
On Pitcairn Island, miro (as it is called there) was once common but extensively logged.
The heartwood of the Portia Tree is dark reddish brown to chocolate brown and has a specific gravity of 0.55 to 0.89.[2] It is used to make the thavil, a Carnatic musical instrument of South India. Milo is popular in Hawaii for woodworking (commonly turned into bowls) because of the range of colors expressed (tan, through yellow, to red). Traditionally it was planted in sacred groves and used for religious sculpture throughout eastern Polynesia. Makoʻi was used for the rongorongo tablets of Easter Island.[6] Since the advent of aluminium-hulled boats in the 20th century, Pitcairners have made regular trips to Henderson Island to harvest miro wood. Usually they only venture to Henderson only once per year, but may make up to three trips if the weather is favorable. Pitcairners carve the wood into curios, from which they derive much of their income.[7] The flower of the Portia Tree played a part in Sri Lanka's independence struggle, when it was sold on Remembrance Day by the Suriya-Mal Movement instead of the poppy to aid indigenous ex-servicemen.