Korthalsia cheb

Korthalsia (kohr-tahl-SEE-ah) cheb (kehb)
Gunung Gading, Sarawak, Malaysia. Photo by Dr. William J. Baker, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew/Palmweb.
Scientific Classification
Genus: Korthalsia (kohr-tahl-SEE-ah) Species: cheb (kehb)
Synonyms
None set.
Native Continent
Asia
Morphology
Habit: Clustering Leaf type: Pinnate
Culture
Survivability index
Common names
wae duru (Pen.), rua (Bid.)

Habitat and Distribution

Borneo. Very local, known from a few collections from the 1st Division.

Gunung Gading, Sarawak, Malaysia. Photo by Dr. William J. Baker, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew/Palmweb.

Elsewhere in Sabah, W., S., and E. Kalimantan, apparently always very local. Endemic to Borneo. It occurs in hill dipterocarp forest at altitudes up to 800 m, usually in humid valleys.

Description

Robust clustering and branching rattan climbing to 40 m. Stem without sheaths to 2 cm in diam., with sheaths to 3 cm in diam., internodes to 20 cm long. Sheaths bright green, ± unarmed except for a few short spines to 2 mm, bearing caducous brown scales, but ± completely covered by the ocrea of the preceding leaf, ocrea very large and conspicuous, tightly sheathing just above the petiole then greatly inflated, the inflated portion to 25 x 4.5 cm, bearing few scattered short triangular spines to 5 mm with broad bases to 10 mm, and thin buff indumentum; ants abundant. Leaf to 2.25 m including the cirrus to 1 m; petiole to 10 cm in young shoots, ± absent in exposed stems; leaflets to 7 on each side of the rachis, large diamond-shaped, to 30 x 15 cm borne on stalks to 1 cm; upper leaflet surface bright green, lower buff-coloured. Inflorescence to c. 75 cm, bearing numerous rachillae to 18 x 0.8 cm, rachillae dull mid brown tomentose. Ripe fruit somewhat oblong, 1.5 x 1 cm covered in 18 vertical rows of straw-coloured scales. Seed 12 x 8 mm; endosperm deeply ruminate. Seedling leaf not known. (J. Dransfield, The Rattans of Sarawak. 1992)/Palmweb. Edting by edric.

Korthalsia cheb is a very distinctive species with its very large inflated ocreas and broad diamond-shaped leaflets. (J. Dransfield, The Rattans of Sarawak. 1992)/Palmweb.

Culture

Cold Hardiness Zone: 10b

Comments and Curiosities

Etymology: Cheb - Italian spelling of a local name, keb.

Uses: Produces a medium-sized rotan merah.