Cinnamomum iners Reinw. Ex Blume

A medium-sized tree up to 24 m tall, bole up to 60 cm in diameter, bark surface smooth, lenticellate, greyish-brown, inner bark pinkish. Leaves opposite or subopposite, (5-)7.5-30 cm x 2-13 cm, base cuneate, rarely rounded, apex blunt to acute, often glaucous below, 3-veined, main veins prominent above, tertiary venation scalariform to scalariform-reticulate, faint to distinct below, petiole 1--2 cm long. Inflorescence an axillary or terminal panicle, up to 18 cm long; flowers sometimes partly unisexual, densely silky hairy. Fruit oblong to narrowly ovoid, c. 1.5 cm x 1 cm, seated on a perianth cup with persistent perianth lobes.

C. iners is common, occurring in primary and secondary lowland and hill forest, often in moist, rather open locations. C. iners in Sarawak is very tolerant of poor soils and still grows fairly rapidly.

After depulping, seed should be dried for only a short time and then sown directly afterwards under shade. Viability of fresh seed is about 40%. Stumping of C. iners has been found to be rather successful: 85% of the stumps of 20 cm long and 0.5 cm in diameter developed into healthy plants.

All medang species must therefore be excluded from preferential treatment at present. A mixed plantation of C. iners and teak (Tectona grandis L.f.) was not satisfactory, as C. iners did not nurse the teak trees to develop a longer clear bole. Seven years after planting the height of C. iners was only 2-3 m.

Diseases: In Java, dieback of C. iners was caused by a fungus identified as Aecidium cinnamomi producing black-brown spots on leaves and twigs.

Seeds cannot be stored, as they very rapidly lose their viability. The number of dry seed per kg is about 6400.

Shade or shelter: The tree is sometimes planted as a shade tree.

Medicine: The bark is sometimes traded and called ""mesni"" in Sarawak; it is used as a medicine. Timber: The wood is used as medang, e.g. for house building and cabinet work. Other products: The oil from the leaves is used for flavouring sweets and confectionery. The bark is sometimes used together with the leaves in tea, and also as a substitute for cinnamon. The mucilage has found technical applications, e.g. in the manufacture of mosquito coils, fragrant joss-sticks, plastic products, formica, glue, inner layering of tyres, coating of high-quality paper products, paints and fibre glass.