Skip to main content

Paperbark (Melaleuca leucadendra)

Dlium Paperbark (Melaleuca leucadendra)

Paperbark (Melaleuca leucadendra) is a species of plant in the Myrtaceae, a large tree, growing to more than 20 meters long, branching, trunk covered with thick bark, white, papery, peeling, flowering almost any time of the year.

M. leucadendra has young leaves and branches covered with fine, short hairs, white when young but glabrous when mature. The leaves are alternately arranged, 75-270 mm long, 6.5-40 mm wide, flat, narrow round or lance-shaped, often curved or sickle-shaped, pointed tip and 5-9 veins.



The flowers are spike-shaped, white or cream or greenish at the tips of the branches that continue to grow after flowering, sometimes on the sides of the branches or in the axils of the upper leaves. Each spike is up to 35 mm in diameter, up to 80 mm long and contains 7-22 flower clusters in three sections.

The petals are 3-4 mm wide and fall off as soon as the flowers open. The stamens are arranged in five bundles around the flower and each bundle contains 5-12 stamens. The fruit is capsule-shaped, woody, 3.9-4.9 mm long, in loose clusters along the stem.

The bark is used to build waterproof huts, wrap food before it is cooked in the oven, wrap dead bodies. Very large tree trunks are used to make canoes. The leaves are used to treat respiratory tract infections. Flowers for making sweet drinks.

Various essential oils can be distilled. The two most common chemotypes are based on methyl eugenol and E-methyl isoeugenol.

TAXON

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Myrtales
Family: Myrtaceae
Subfamily: Myrtoideae
Tribe: Melaleuceae
Genus: Melaleuca L. in Mant. Pl. 1: 14 (1767)
Complex: Melaleuca leucadendra
Species: Melaleuca leucadendra (L.) L. in Mant. Pl. 1: 105 (1767)

HOMOTYPIC SYNONYMS

Kajuputi leucadendron (L.) Farw. in Druggists' Circ. 61: 175 (1917)
Leptospermum leucodendron (L.) J.R.Forst. & G.Forst. in Char. Gen. Pl., ed. 2.: 72 (1776)
Meladendron leucocladum St.-Lag. in Ann. Soc. Bot. Lyon 7: 64 (1880)
Myrtus leucadendra L. in Herb. Amb.: 9 (1754)

HETEROTYPIC SYNONYMS

Melaleuca amboinensis Gand. in Bull. Soc. Bot. France 65: 26 (1918)
Melaleuca leucadendra var. angusta C.Rivière in Bull. Soc. Natl. Acclim. France, sér. 3, 9: 537 (1882)
Melaleuca leucadendra var. cunninghamii F.M.Bailey in Syn. Queensl. Fl.: 171 (1883)
Melaleuca leucadendra var. lancifolia F.M.Bailey (1883)
Melaleuca leucadendra var. mimosoides (A.Cunn. ex Schauer) Cheel in A.J.Ewart & O.B.Davies, Fl. N. Territory: 295 (1917)
Melaleuca mimosoides A.Cunn. ex Schauer in W.G.Walpers, Repert. Bot. Syst. 2: 927 (1843)
Melaleuca rigida Roxb. in Fl. Ind., ed. 1832. 3: 399 (1832)
Metrosideros coriacea Salisb. in Prodr. Stirp. Chap. Allerton: 352 (1796)
Myrtus alba Noronha in Verh. Batav. Genootsch. Kunsten 5(4): 20 (1790)
Myrtus saligna Burm.f. in Fl. Indica: 116 (1768)

PUBLICATIONS

Akoègninou, A., van der Burg, W.J. & van der Maesen, L.J.G. (eds.) (2006). Flore Analytique du Bénin: 1-1034. Backhuys Publishers.

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

Baksh-Comeau, Y., Maharaj, S.S., Adams, C.D., Harris, S.A., Filer, D.L. & Hawthorne, W.D. (2016). An annotated checklist of the vascular plants of Trinidad and Tobago with analysis of vegetation types and botanical 'hotspots'. Phytotaxa 250: 1-431.

Davidse, G. & al. (eds.) (2009). Flora Mesoamericana 4(1): 1-855. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México, D.F.

Figueiredo, E., Paiva, J., Stévart, T., Oliveira, F. & Smith, G.F. (2011). Annotated catalogue of the flowering plants of São Tomé and Príncipe. Bothalia 41: 41-82.

Girmansyah, D. & al. (eds.) (2013). Flora of Bali an annotated checklist: 1-158. Herbarium Bogorensis, Indonesia.

Govaerts, R. (2003). World Checklist of Selected Plant Families Database in ACCESS: 1-216203. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Govaerts, R., Sobral, N., Ashton, P., Barrie, F., Holst, B.K., Landrum, L.L., Matsumoto, K., Fernanda Mazine, F., Nic Lughadha, E., Proença, C. & al. (2008). World Checklist of Myrtaceae: 1-455. Kew Publishing, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Karthigeyan, K., Pandey, R.P. & Mao, A.A. (eds.) (2023). Flora of Andaman and Nicobar Islands 2: 1-689. Botanical Survey of India. Ministry of environment, forest and climate change.

Molino, J.-F., Sabatier, D., Grenand, P., Engel, J., Frame, D., Delprete, P.G., Fleury, M., Odonne, G., Davy, D., Lucas, E.J. & Martin, C.A. (2022). An annotated checklist of the tree species of French Guiana, including vernacular nomenclature. Adansonia, sér. 3, 44: 345-903.

Nurtjahya, E. & al. (2026). Flowering Plants of Bangka Island: Native and Introduced. Acta Botanica Hungarica 68: 127-156.

Sosef, M.S.M. & al. (2006). Check-list des plantes vasculaires du Gabon. Scripta Botanica Belgica 35: 1-438.

VERNACULAR NAME

Chinese (simplified): 白千层 - 阔叶白千层
Chinese (traditional): 白千層 - 闊葉白千層
English: Paperbark, Weeping paperbark, Long-leaved paperbark, White Paperbark
Finnish: Valkokaarnamyrtti
French: Mélaleuque pleureur
Hebrew: מללויקה רחבת-עלים
Hindi: Shitanshu, Vishaha
Indonesian: Kayuputih, Gelam
Java: Kayuputih
Kannada: Kaajapute
Malayalam: Cajeputier, Kaipoothimaram
Marathi: Kayaputi
Portuguese: Melaleuca
Russian: Кайюпутовое дерево
Sanskrit: Kayaputi
Slovak: Melaleuka biela
Swedish: Kajeputträd
Tamil: Kaiyapputai

Aryo Bandoro
Dlium TheDlium
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Dlium
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) manufacture bubble-nets as tools to increase prey intake

NEWS - Humpback whales ( Megaptera novaeangliae ) create bubble net tools while foraging, consisting of internal tangential rings, and actively control the number of rings, their size, depth and horizontal spacing between the surrounding bubbles. These structural elements of the net increase prey intake sevenfold. Researchers have known that humpback whales create “bubble nets” for hunting, but the new report shows that the animals also manipulate them in a variety of ways to maximize catches. The behavior places humpbacks among the rare animals that make and use their own tools. “Many animals use tools to help them find food, but very few actually make or modify these tools themselves,” said Lars Bejder, director of the Marine Mammal Research Program (MMRP), University of Hawaii at Manoa. “Humpback whales in southeast Alaska create elaborate bubble nets to catch krill. They skillfully blow bubbles in patterns that form a web with internal rings. They actively control details such ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Javan mocca or Javan slender caesar (Amanita javanica)

OPINION - Javan mocca or Javan slender caesar ( Amanita javanica ) is a mysterious fungus species and has been enigmatic since it was first reported by Boedijn in 1951 and after that no explanation or reporting of specimens is believed to be the same as expected. Boedijn (1951) described A. javanica which grew on Java island as having the characteristics covered in the Amanita genus. Corner and Bas in 1962 tried to describe Javan mocca and all species in Amanita based on specimens in Singapore. Over time some reports say that they have found A. javanica specimens in other Southeast Asia including also China, Japan, India and Nepal. But there is no definitive knowledge and many doubt whether the specimen is the same as described by Boedijn (1951). I was fortunate to have seen this species one afternoon and soon I took out a camera for some shots. In fact, I've only met this mushroom species once. Javan mocca is an endangered species and I have never seen in my experience in...
Post a Comment
Read more

Awar awar (Ficus septica)

Awar-awar or lagnob or hauli tree or barabar or sirih popar or tobo tobo ( Ficus septica ) is species of plants in Moraceae, trees grow in bushes or in neglected places and sap contained in roots, twigs, leaves and fruit is used to treat poisoning and digestive problems. F. septica is usually 1-5 m high, although in the forest it can be up to 25 m. Round, hollow and bare branches. Roots, twigs, leaves and fruit will emit a yellow sap and sticky if injured. The base of the leaves is large and spiky, arranged alternately or face to face with a stem length of 2.5-5 cm. Large leaf blade, round egg, 9-30x9-16 cm, rounded base and blunt narrow tip, flat-edged, upper side dark green with 6-12 secondary bones pale white. Fruit paired, single or clustered up to 4 items, short-stemmed, at the base has 3 protective leaves, light green or gray green and 1.5 cm in diameter. F. septica is food for 22 animal species including wasps, bats, birds, monkeys and mice as well as seed dispersing vecto...
Post a Comment
Read more