Sea Teak (HT 2017 288)

Reference ID
HT 2017-288

Scientific name: Podocarpus polystachyus
Family name: Podocarpaceae
Girth: 2.32 m @ 1.3 m height
Height: 19.1 m

Location
Sembawang Park, next
to the Beaulieu House

The Sea Teak is an evergreen conifer native to Singapore. This attractive coastal tree can reach heights of 20 m. The crown is dense, broadly conical to irregular or dome-like, often with long, horizontally straggling branches that curve up at the ends. The leaves are dark green, tough and leathery. They are narrow, linear and taper to a point at the apex. Leaves on juvenile trees tend to be larger and longer than those on mature individuals.

This species has male and female cones on separate trees (dioecious). A tree would bear either male cones or female cones. Female cones consist of a single seed seated on a fleshy receptacle (seed stalk) that birds feed on.

While the species is locally endangered in the wild, it is popularly planted as landscape trees.

This Sea Teak is located next to The Beaulieu House, which was built in the 1910s as a seaside home. This tree may well have existed here before or when the Beaulieu house was built and likely before the Sembawang Naval Base construction began in 1923.

As a slow growing species with a girth of 2.2 m, this Heritage Tree was estimated to be around 100 years of age when it was endorsed as a Heritage Tree in 2017. female flowers are found on the same tree (monoecious). Its fruit is about 18 cm long, and turns from cream-yellow to brown and emits a nauseous, rancid smell when ripe.

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

Gallery

📷: Brendon Phuah