Gmelina arborea is a fast-growing deciduous timber tree from South and Southeast Asia, also planted in gardens and avenues. It grows best in warm, seasonally dry tropical climates and is not typically grown as a houseplant.
Family
Lamiaceae (Mint family)
Grows as
Tree
Light
Full sun
Water
Water regularly while young and during dry spells; established trees tolerate seasonal drought.
Soil
Well-drained, fertile soil; tolerates a range of soil types.
Temperature
Warm tropical conditions; protect from frost.
How easy
Easy
Native range
Pakistan to China (S. Yunnan) and N. Indo-China
Climate
seasonally dry tropical
About
Gmelina arborea, (in English beechwood, gmelina, goomar teak, Kashmir tree, Malay beechwood, white teak, yamane ), locally known as gamhar, is a fast-growing deciduous tree in the family Lamiaceae.
Safety
Lignans, such as 6" - bromo - isoarboreol, 4-hydroxysesamin, 4,8-dihydroxysesamin, 1,4-dihydroxysesamin (gummadiol), 2-piperonyl-3-hydroxymethyl-4-(α-hydroxy-3,4-methylenedioxybenzyl)-4-hydroxytetrahydrofuran and the 4-O-glucoside of 4-epigummadiol, can be isolated from the heartwood of Gmelina arborea. The parent compounds are arboreol or gmelanone.
Umbelliferone 7-apiosylglucoside can be isolated from the root.
Where it grows
Gmelina arborea grows naturally throughout India, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and in southern provinces of China. It is found at altitudes from sea level to 1,500 metres (5,000 ft). Since the 1960s, it has been introduced extensively as fast-growing timber trees in Brazil, Gambia, Honduras, Ivory Coast, Malaysia, Malawi, Nigeria, the Philippines, and Sierra Leone. It is also planted in gardens and avenues.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Gmelina arborea 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.