Eden

Penang Botanic Gardens Plant Collection

Aleurites moluccana Willd. (EUPHORBIACEAE)

Posted at — Nov 13, 2019
Candlenut Tree, Buah Keras, Kekui Nut Tree

Description

Evergreen tree to 25 m tall with spreading crown. Leaves 10-28 cm long, triangular or ovate. Flowers white or cream, in branched many-flowered clusters; male and female on the same cluster. Male 5-10 mm long, white to cream; female slightly larger than male. Fruits 5-7 cm across, green with whitish flesh, broadly ovoid to spherical.

Ecology

Country of origin unknown, only known in cultivation.

Distribution

Cultivated throughout the tropics.

Uses

The nut is often used cooked in SE Asian cuisine, to thicken sauce. The nut is mildly toxic when raw. In the past, the high oil content of the nut was burned to provide light. The oil is also extracted for making soap and candles, hence the English name