Easily recognisable national tree
View(s):
The Na tree: easily identified by its conical shape and dense, low-hanging foliage, bright pinkish-red young leaves and showy white flowers. Photographs: left, by Luxmanan Nadaraja and right, by the author
- Continuing our tree series to mark the 50th anniversary of Ruk Rakaganno
By Dr Sriyanie Miththapala
Mesua ferrea
Common English name: Ceylon Ironwood
Family: Clusiaceae (The mangosteen family)
(Sinhala name: Na; Tamil name: Nakai/Nagacuram)
This is the national tree of Sri Lanka. A conically shaped, medium-sized tree, it is found naturally in the low country wet zone and as a sub-canopy tree in lowland rainforests such as Sinharaja, up to 1000 m elevation.
This is an easily recognisable tree, as its trunk is usually hidden by densely overhanging leaves. Both the leaves and branches hang downwards. Young leaves are a striking dark pink/red and the tree with young leaves is beautiful. The slender leaves taper at both ends and are dark green on the top surface and a whitish grey on the undersurface.
The large, white flowers are scented delicately and bloom from February through June.
The edges of the petals are crinkled heavily like crêpe paper. The centre of the flower (with the reproductive parts) is large and yellow. During the flowering season, flowers dot the trees. Fruits are usually oval-shaped.
This tree is used as an ornamental tree along roadsides, for example in front of the Colombo Town Hall and the road leading to the Parliament in Sri Jayawardenepura. The wood is a reddish brown and, as its common English name implies, very durable – used in the past in temple carvings and for construction. The flowers are used in native medicine, as well as for offerings in temples.
Extracted from ‘What tree is that? The Ruk Rakaganno Layperson’s Guide to Some Trees of Sri Lanka’. Updated by Sriyanie Miththapala using ‘Flowering plants commonly encountered in Sri Lankan habitats’ by Sriyanie Miththapala, Siril Wijesundara and Janaki Galappatti. (2011). National Trust: Colombo.
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