Thespesia populnea (L.) Sol. ex Corrêa

Portia tree, Pacific rosewood, Indian tulip tree, milo

Portia tree is a tropical perennial tree common on pantropical seacoasts worldwide, at elevations below 902′ (275 m). It has a staggering number of common names—12 in English alone, with many more in other languages. Its fine-grained, durable wood is used to make drums, artwork, canoes, and flooring.

Plants: 20–33′ (6–10 m) tall, with a grayish trunk 8–12″ (20–30 cm) in diameter. It has a dense crown, and spreading branches. Heartwood is dark reddish to chocolate brown in color. Twigs are densely covered with brown to silvery scales.

Leaves: Alternate, with smooth edges. Each leaf has a stalk (petiole) 1¾–3″ (5–8 cm). Leaves are orbicular, deltoid, ovate, or oblong, 2½–9 ⨉ 1¾–6″ (7–23 ⨉ 5–16 cm), with yellow major veins.

Flowers: Showy, solitary bell-shaped yellow flowers. Each flower’s stalk (pedicel) is ⅞–3″ (2.5–8 cm) long. The corolla is up to 2″ (6 cm) around, with 5 petals, and pale yellow with a dark purple center. Flowers appear from April to January.

Fruits: Roughly spherical capsules are ¾–1¾″ (2–4.5 cm) in diameter, and 5-celled. They exude a bright yellow gum when cut. Each cell has four seeds, ¼–½ ⨉ ⅛–¼″ (8–15 ⨉ 6–9 mm) in size. Seeds survive for up to a year on oceans.

Habitats: Salt-tolerant, preferring well-drained sandy, gravelly and rocky soils derived from coral limestone and volcanic parent materials.

Online References:

Thespesia populnea description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.

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