Cordia dichotoma J.G. Forster

Cordia dichotoma is a small to moderate-sized deciduous tree with a short bole and spreading crown. The stem bark is greyish brown, smooth or longitudinally wrinkled. Flowers are short-stalked, bisexual and white in colour, appear in loose corymbose cymes. The fruit is a yellow or pinkish-yellow shining globose or ovoid drupe seated in a saucer-like enlarged calyx. It turns black on ripening and the pulp gets viscid. The hard stone is 1-4 seeded. The generic name honours a 16th century German botanist, Valerius Cordus. The specific epithet means having divisions always in pairs.

Flowers are bisexual. Flowering takes place from March to May with the new leaves. The old leaves are shed during winter and the trees are leafless for a short period in early summer. Fruits are formed soon after flowering, develop quickly and ripen from June to August in north India and normally before May in south India. Seed dispersal is aided by birds and monkeys which feed on the ripe fruit. Flowers bisexual.

The tree prefers deep moist sandy loam soils.

C. dichotoma is a tree of tropical and subtropical regions. It grows in the sub-Himalayan tract and outer ranges, ascending up to about 1 500 m elevation. It is found in a variety of forests ranging from the dry deciduous forests of Rajasthan to the moist deciduous forests of Western Ghats and tidal forests in Myanmar. In Maharashtra, it grows in moist monsoon forest also. It does not grow gregariously, but is found growing singly in moist shady ravines and valleys. In areas with annual rainfall less than 500 mm, it thrives along streams or depressions where moisture is available.

It is often cultivated for its fruits throughout the range of its natural distribution.

Germination is epigeous. 1 or 2 seedlings may appear from 1 stone. Propagation is through seed which should be sown direct into containers, beds or trays and pricked out when the first pair of true leaves have formed. Sowing is done in June-July at a depth of 2 cm in lines spaced about 20 cm apart. A seed rate of 80 g/sq. m of nursery area is adopted. Germination starts in about 3-4 weeks and is complete in 6 weeks. At lower altitudes, plantable seedlings can be obtained after 3-4 months in the nursery, but at higher altitudes, 9-12 months are needed. In India raising plants from stumps has been carried out successfully. The stumps should be 8-13 mm thick at the root collar, with about 4 cm stem and 20-25 cm root. Such plants should be raised in beds for 12-15 months before stumping. Shading should be for only 1 week after seedlings have been pricked out, otherwise seedlings should have full light. Frequent weeding and root pruning is necessary. Seedlings should be ready for planting in the field in about 1 year at the commencement of monsoon rains.

Young seedlings are frost tender and also suffer from exposure to hot sun. They are susceptible to browsing and fire, but recover appreciably from these injuries. The tree coppices and pollards well. On good sites the trees reach a height of 4 m in 4 years and a diameter of over 20 cm in 8-9 years. From pole stage it prefers complete overhead light, but seedlings and saplings can withstand a fair amount of shade.

A large number of insect pests are reported, defoliators being among the most important. Larvae of some insects of the families Chrysomelidae, Glyphiplerygidae, Noctuidae, Lymantreedae, Notodontidae, Pyralidae, Sphingidae and Yponomeutidae defoliate the leaves. Larvae of Gracilariidae and Lyonetiidae mine the leaves and those of Eucosmidae roll the leaves. Larvae of some insects belonging to families Eucosmidae, Curculionidae and Pyralidae bore into the fruits and shoots. Austrothrips cochinchinensis forms galls and feeds on the sap. Aceria gallae and A. pobuzii infest C. dichotoma in Taiwan and cause galls on leaves, fruits, shoots and tender stems. The weevil Barioscapus cordiae, adults attack the fruits and feed on the green pedicel, sepals and pollen grains inside the buds.

Ripe fruits are collected from the trees and rubbed to remove the flesh. The healthy stones are dried in the shade and kept in tin containers. The stones can be stored for 1 year in airtight containers kept in a dry place to avoid insect attack. There are 4 000-7 000 stones/kg.

Boundary or barrier or support: C. dichotoma is a quick-growing fruit tree, performing well under semi-arid conditions and suitable for planting along boundary and farm roads.

Food: The immature fruits are pickled and are also used as a vegetable Fodder: The leaves yield good fodder and are lopped for this purpose. They contain 12-15 % crude protein, 16-27 % crude fibre, 42-53 % nitrogen-free extract, 2-3 % ether extract, 13-17 % total ash, 2-4 % calcium and about 0.3 % phosphorus. The seed kernel of C. dichotoma contains a high proportion of fatty oils and proteins (46 and 31%, respectively) which has potential as cattle feed. Fuel: The tree is used as a fuelwood. Timber: The wood is used to make agricultural implements. Poison: Fruit extract of C. dichotoma suppresses larval hatching of Meloidogyne incognita. Medicine: Seeds of the species are anti-inflammatory, 2 compounds alpha-amyrin and 5-dirhamnoside have been isolated. The bark is medicinal and several chemicals have been identified; Allantoin, beta -sitosterol and 3',5-dihydroxy-4'-methoxy flavanone-7-O- alpha -L-rhamnopyranoside. The seed kernel has medicinal properties.