Kareumbi (Homalanthus populneus)

Kareumbi (Homalanthus populneus) is a plant species in Euphorbiaceae, a medium-sized tree or bush, up to 10 m tall and trunk diameter up to 30 cm, round, straight but sometimes bent, many branches and flexible, rootstock enlarges when growing in mountain forests.

H. populneus has a smooth bark, brown to gray skin, not cracked but lenticles and pale patches with grayish lentis, yellow on the inside, very thin, soft and yellow cambium. Pale bark whitish to purple. Thin and wide canopy.

The single leaf is arranged in a spiral, heart-shaped, elliptical base and sharp tip, thick, has a 1-13 cm long stalk, a main bone in the middle continues the stalk, several minor bones are pinned, green on the upper surface and blood red on the lower surface.

The young leaves are reddish green on the upper surface and blood red on the lower surface. Leaves on young tree are larger and have a heart-shaped base, while leaves on older trees have a smaller size with a rounded base.

Flowers grow at the tips of branches, in the form of grains and yellowish white, stalks of 0.6-3 mm long, 8-10 stamens per flower. The fruits are round, clustered, bright green and have 1-2.5 cm long stems.

Kareumbi grows in the tropics, lots of sun, pioneers that grow in logged forests, secondary forests and riverside forests in the lowlands to 2000 m. They grow in open areas and sometimes in open parts of intact forests.

Propagation naturally using seeds and shoots. It has never been cultivated, despite very rapid growth. The tree is 2.5 meters high with a trunk diameter of 10 cm after the shoot is a year old.

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Malpighiales
Family: Euphorbiaceae
Genus: Homalanthus
Species: Homalanthus populneus

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