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Falcataria falcata
Also called Molucca Albizia
In Singapore: Albizia, Kayu Machis, Batai, Peacocksplume, 南洋楹, 南洋合欢 (Naturalised in Singapore)
Falcataria falcata is a fast-growing tree from Maluku and nearby islands, grown for timber and pulp in South and Southeast Asia. It is invasive on several Pacific and Indian Ocean islands, so it is best grown only where it is not a threat.
Falcataria falcata (syns. Albizia falcata, Falcataria moluccana and Paraserianthes falcataria), commonly known as the Moluccan albizia, is a species of fast-growing tree in the family Fabaceae. It is native to the Maluku Islands, New Guinea, the Bismarck Archipelago, and the Solomon Islands. It is cultivated for timber throughout South Asian and Southeast Asian countries. This tree is considered to be invasive in Hawaii, American Samoa and several other island nations in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. It reaches about 30 m (100 ft) tall in nature, and has a massive trunk and an open crown. It is most famous for its remarkable rate of growth. It has been recorded growing 16 m (52 ft) in three years, 33 m (108 ft) in nine years and 45 m (148 ft) in seventeen years.
Commercial uses – Falcataria falcata softwood is used to make match-sticks, chopsticks, shipping pallets, and wooden boxes. The pulp is used for paper-making. Plywood production and veneer based products have increasingly been an important use for these trees.
[Contains information from Leaf Area Index (LAI) and Heritage Trees from data.gov.sg (National Parks Board), made available under the terms of the Singapore Open Data Licence version 1.0]
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Falcataria falcata by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
