Syzygium subcorymbosum Merr. & L.M.Perry

Tuiwawa, S. H., Craven, L. A., Sam, C. & Crisp, M. D., 2013, The genus Syzygium (Myrtaceae) in Vanuatu, Blumea 58 (1), pp. 53-67 : 64

18. Syzygium subcorymbosum Merr. & L.M.Perry

Syzygium subcorymbosum Merr.& L.M.Perry (1942a) 297. — Typus: Brass 5573 (holo A photo seen), Papua New Guinea, Central Province, Kubuna, 100 m, Nov. 1933.

Tree up to 15–20 m tall. Vegetative branchlets terete, c. 4–6 mm diam; bark dull, longitudinally cracked, not glandular-verrucose, persistent. Leaf lamina up to 8.6 by 3.7 cm, elliptic; base symmetric, attenuate, slightly decurrent to the petiole acuminate; apex acuminate, acumen recurved; margin slightly undulate; coriaceous; drying reddish brown above; primary vein (midrib) less than 1 mm wide; secondary veins closed, more than 20 each side of primary vein, c. 3 mm apart; intramarginal vein strongly arched, c. 2 cm from the margin at the lamina midpoint; secondary intramarginal vein weakly arched; tertiary intramarginal vein absent; oil dots present, not visible to the unaided eye in transmitted light, small, moderately dense. Petiole c. 10 mm long; adaxially slightly grooved. Inflorescence terminal, cymose panicle, c. 10 by 11 cm, cluster of 3; hypopodium absent; main inflorescence axis c. 3 mm wide, terete to quadrangular, rounded, dull, smooth; bracts deciduous, not seen. Hypanthium not stipitate, clavate, c. 8 by 4 mm, glossy, not visibly gland dotted, smooth. Sepals 4, subcircular, up to 0.5 by 3 mm, persistent, free. Petals not seen. Stamens numerous; filaments free, white; anther sacs elliptic, up to 4 by 2 µm. Style c. 5 mm long. Fruit yellow, smooth to ribbed, plane, barrel-shaped to depressed spheroidal, 30–46 by 18–24 mm.

Distribution & Ecology — Vanuatu (Malampa province: Paama; Penama province: Pentecost; Shefa province: Efate). Syzygium subcorymbosum occurs in Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. It is a common rainforest tree that occurs from sea level up to 400 m asl.

Vernacular names — Nguna-ha (Efate); Aiwun (Paama); Haa (Pentecost).

Uses — General timber, firewood, ground posts.

Notes — 1. Flowers have been recorded throughout the year and fruit in June and July.

2. In Vanuatu, S. subcorybosum is sometimes misidentified as S. buettnerianum Nied.

3. Syzygium subcorymbosum could be misidentified as S. onesimum , however, these two species are differentiated in fruit size and colour. In S. onesimum the fruit is ellipsoid or spheroidal or obconoidal, up to 1.8 by 1.4 cm and purple. For S. subcorymbosum it is barrel-shaped to depressed spheroidal, 3–4.6 by 1.8–2.4 cm and yellow.