Common Pulai (HT 2003 36)

Reference ID
HT 2003-36

Scientific name: Alstonia angustiloba
Family name: Apocynaceae
Girth: 6.5 m @ 1.3 m height
Height: 26.2 m

Location
Royal Road end, on slope
behind House No. 7

The Common Pulai or Alstonia angustiloba is a mid-canopy tree that can reach up to 40 m in height. It is native to Singapore and is naturally distributed across the primary or secondary forests and swamp forests of Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo and Java.

It has buttress roots and its deeply fluted, dark grey trunk supports a pagoda-shaped crown. The Common Pulai has simple, glossy, dark green leaves that are oval shaped, arranged in whorls. The tree exudes latex when any part of the plant is damaged. In Singapore, flowering can be triggered by distinctly cool dry weather, and the tree produces many sprays of creamy-white flowers accompanied by a heady fragrance reminiscent of burnt sugar.

The Common Pulai and Indian Pulai (Alstonia scholaris) are both similar looking and commonly planted in Singapore’s urban landscapes. However, they can be differentiated by a few characteristics: The Indian Pulai has greenish-yellow flowers while the Common Pulai has creamy-white flowers, and the Indian Pulai has a stipule at the base of the petiole (leaf stalk) while the Common Pulai does not.

For more information on this species, please refer to NParks' Flora & Fauna Web profile here.

Gallery

Overall shot of Heritage Tree
(📷: Heritage Tree Secretariat)

Overall shot of Heritage Tree with surrounding landscape (📷: Heritage Tree Secretariat)