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Petai (Parkia speciosa)

Dlium Petai (Parkia speciosa)

Stink bean or bitter bean or pete or petai (Parkia speciosa) is a tropical tree species in Fabaceae, 5-25 m high and branched, reddish brown bark, always green, compound and pinnate leaves, young seeds are harvested as fresh or boiled food.

P. speciosa has a hump-shaped flower that hangs with a long stalk, usually appearing near the tips of the branches. Young flowers and not yet blooming are green, mature flowers have stamens and pistils, old flowers turn yellow and large in size.







Dozens of long, flat pod-shaped fruits emerge from a flower hump. Each pod has up to 10-20 seeds, green when young and wrapped in a rather thick membrane of light brown. The fruit dries and becomes harder as it ripens and releases the seeds.

This tree has at least two varieties. Petai Gajah has 15-18 seeds, while Petai Kacang has 10-12 seeds. Usually sold with pods included. Seeds have a distinctive and pungent odor, are consumed fresh or as a mixture of a number of dishes.

Bean is eaten raw with sambal as part of fresh vegetables, fried or roasted. Traditional medicine uses seeds to treat anemia, stress, premenstrual syndrome, depression, abdominal pain, intestinal worms and other.

This species grows at an elevation of 0-1500 meters, rainfall 1000-2000 mm/year, latosol to clay soil, pH 5.5-7, full sunlight and a wet climate.

The plants contain flavonoids, alkaloids, phenols, terpenoids (β-sitosterol, stigmasterol, lupeol, campesterol, squalene), cyclic polysulfides, thiazolidine-4- carboxylate, saponins, hexathionine, tetrathiane, trithiolane, penthathiopane, pentathiocane, tetrathiepane, djenkolic acid.

Often used to treat liver and kidneys, worms, stress, stomach ulcers, large warts, anemia, constipation, stop smoking, reduce high blood pressure and stroke, prevent morning sickness in pregnant women, has antioxidant and antidiabetic activity.

TAXON

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae
Subfamily: Mimosoideae
Genus: Parkia R.Br. in Narr. Travels Africa, App. XXII: 234 (1826)
Species: Parkia speciosa Hassk. in Flora 25(2, Beibl. 1): 55 (1842)

HETEROTYPIC SYNONYMS

Acacia gigantea Noronha in Verh. Batav. Genootsch. Kunsten 5(4): 5 (1790)
Acacia graveolens Jack in Malayan Misc. 2(7): 78 (1822)
Inga pyriformis Jungh. ex Miq. in Fl. Ned. Ind. 1(1): 52 (1855)
Mimosa pedunculata W.Hunter in J. Straits Branch Roy. Asiat. Soc. 53: 121 (1909)
Parkia calcarata Gagnep. in Notul. Syst. (Paris) 2: 56 (1911)
Parkia graveolens Prain in J. Asiat. Soc. Bengal, Pt. 2, Nat. Hist. 66: 241 (1897)
Parkia harbesonii Elmer in Leafl. Philipp. Bot. 5: 1804 (1913)
Parkia macrocarpa Miq. in Fl. Ned. Ind., Eerste Bijv.: 284 (1861)

PUBLICATIONS

Aung, Y.L., Aung, M.H., Tan, Y. & Jin, X. (2025). An updated checklist of vascular plants of Myanmar. PhytoKeys 261: 135-364.

Lock, J.M. & Ford, C.S. (2004). Legumes of Malesia a Check-List: 1-295. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Lock, J.M. & Heald, J. (1994). Legumes of Indo-China a check-list: 1-164. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

VERNACULAR NAME

Ambon: Pateh, Pateka
Bima: Pode
Buru: Foopatu
English: Petai, Bitter bean, Stink bean, Twisted cluster bean, Sator bean
Philippines: U'pang
Indonesian: Petai, Pete
Javanese: Pete, Sindutan
Karo: Parira
Lampung: Petar
Malaysia: Petai, nyiring, patag
Minangkabau: Patai
Polish: Parkia wspaniała
Russian: Паркия красивая
Sawu: Pote
Seram: Paloh
Slovak: Parkia nádherná
Sumba: Puti
Sunda: Peuteuy (Sunda)
Thai: สะตอ
Toba: Palia, Pelia

Aryo Bandoro
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