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Sultan Champa
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Sultan Champa
ative Photo: Dinesh Valke
Common name: Beauty Leaf, Alexandrian laurel, ball tree, beach calophyllum, beauty leaf, domba oil tree, Indian laurel, mast wood, oilnut tree, pinnay oil tree, red poon • Assamese: তেল telo • Bengali: পুন্নাগ punnaga • Hindi: सुलतान चम्पा sultan champa, सुरपुन surpun • Kannada: ಹೊನ್ನೆ honne, ಹೂಹೊನ್ನೆ huhonne, ನಮೇರು ಮರ nameru mara, ಪಿನ್ನೇಕಾಯಿ pinnaykaayi, ಪೊನ್ನೆ ponne, ಪುನ್ನಾಗ punnaga, ಸುಡಾಬು ಮರ sudaabu mara, ಸುರಹೊನ್ನೆ surahonne, ಊಮ ಗಿಡ uuma gida, ವೋಮ voma, ಇರೈ Irai • Konkani: उंडी undi, ಉಂಡೀರೂಕು undiruku, उंगम ungam • Malayalam: പുന്ന punna • Marathi: पुन्नाग punnaga, उंडी undi • Odia: କାମ୍ବୋଜ kamboja, ନାଗ ପୁଷ୍ପ naga pushpa, ସୁର ତରୁ sura taru • Sanskrit: काम्बोज kamboja, नमेरु nameru, पञ्चकेशर panchakeshara, पुंनाग punnaga, पुरुष purusha, तुङ्ग tunga • Tamil: நமேரு nameru, புன்னை punnai, புருடம் purutam • Telugu: నామేరు naameru, పొన్న ponna, పున్నాగ punnaga • Tulu: ಪೊನ್ನೆಥ ಮರ ponnetha mara • Urdu: سرپن surpun Source: Names of Plants in India
Botanical name: Calophyllum inophyllum   Family: Calophyllaceae (Beautyleaf family)

Sultan Champa is a beautiful large evergreen tree native to southern coastal India, East Africa, Malaysia and Australia. It is a low-branching and slow-growing tree with a broad and irregular crown. It usually reaches 8 to 20 m in height. The tree supports a dense canopy of glossy, elliptical leaves. The very fragrant white flowers are 25 mm across and occur in racemose or paniculate inflorescences consisting of 4 to 15 flowers. The flowers have snow-white petals with a thick center of yellow stamens. The fragrant flowers have been prized as an adornment and as a perfume. The fruit (the ballnut) is a round, green drupe reaching 2 to 4 cm in diameter and having a single large seed. When ripe, the fruit is wrinkled and its color varies from yellow to brownish-red. This tree often grows in coastal regions as well as nearby lowland forests. However it has also been cultivated successfully in inland areas at moderate altitudes.

Identification credit: Tabish Photographed at Burondi & Malgund, Maharashtra.

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