International Oaks

• by Eike Jablonski Luxembourg, GERMANY

ne may be surprised to learn that on Borneo, Java and other regions of Indonesia and Malaysia there are oaks growing in the rainforests. In fact Fagaceae are widespread in the Malaysian region, with more than 100 Lithocarpus species and 19 Quercus species. All the Quercus in the area belong to the subgenus C)clobalanopsis (Oerststed) Schneider which is confined to eastern and . outh-eastern Asia. Other genera of the oak fa1nily, such as Castanopsis and Trigonobalanus also occur in the Malaysian region. The Malaysian Quercus species are distributed as follows: Malay Peninsula (8 spp.), Sumatra (l 0 spp.), West and Central Java (5 spp.), Borneo (18 spp.), and Palawan (1 species). Quercus spp. in Malaysia often constitute the canopy of the primary evergreen lowland, and even more commonly, the lower tnontane rainforest. Species occur from sea level up to 3400 1n , most commonly at altitudes of700 1800 111, growing in various types of forest such as mixed di pterocarp forest, swan1p forest and ridge forest (Leintnons et al., 1995). Borneo is the third largest island of the world, with a total area of nearly 7 50 000 square kilometres, but a population of only 10 million. Three quarters of Borneo belongs to Indonesia, constituting the part called Kalimantan. The re t is divided between the two Malaysian tates, Sabah and Sarawak, and Brunei. Much of Borneo is no longer wild and tranquil rainforests since burning and logging have destroyed 1nore than 50 percent of the rainforest. Even in retnote areas one wilJ

contd. on pg. 56

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hardly find any virgin rainforest; more Mount Kinabalu has an interesting often you will see endless plantations history. The massif is quite young and of oil palms. And in steeper and more is composed of exposed granite rock difficult areas, the forests are burnt which began rising out of the basic soils down for a few years of pineapple culture about 10 million years ago. It is said that for the local markets. Kinabalu is still pushing up at around 5 Within easy access is the Malaysian mm a year, and that 10,000 years ago the state of Sabah, a unique spot for mountain was probably some hundred mountaineers and botanists from all over meters higher with an ice-capped top. the world because Borneo's highest Forn1er glaciation is still visible on the peak, Mount Kinabalu, reaches 4101 tn. summit. The rich spectrum of vegetation The whole mountain massif was arises from the great variety of climatic transformed into a national park. zones and marked differences in soil Kinabalu massif is not only an important types. On average, there is a drop in water catchment, but also a treasure of mean temperature of 0.55°C for every flora and fauna, with lots of endemic 100m increase in elevation. Therefore, species that grow nowhere else in the the low land forests around the base of world. The KJnabalu n1assif is by far the the mountain have daily mean most interesting place in Borneo to see temperatures of28°C, while in the su1runit Malaysian oaks, as there are more than region, temperatures are only around 6- 10 species of Quercus growing here, with 80C, with occasional frost associated three species endemic to this location. with drought. A characteristic feature of tropical mountains i s the high air humidity and increasing water surplus with saturation of the soil. The daily clouds that cover the mid-zone from 1200- ~·- VI .s::: 2000 m to 3000-3200 m are a stable feature -0 ..0 .....,0 and this area is the primary oak-forest ~ ~ LU·- zone. }; On Kinabalu, four characteristic 0 +- 0 ...r:: floristic zones develop: the lowland a. forest up to 1200 m; the lower montane Quercus lowii acorns collected at approximately 2000 m on Mt. Kinabalu, Sabah. Borneo. zone up to 2000-2300 m· the upper International Oaks mountain zone up to 2800 m; and a subalpine zone at 2800-3400 m. Oaks are present in all zones except the subalpine ~·- zone. The soils are generally acid at V)s:: 0 -..0 higher elevations, with very peaty soils 0 ~ (\) in the montane forest zones. From the ~ w·- >- montane zones to the summit a large ..0 0 +- range of Ericaceae (e.g. around 35 ...s::0 0.. species of Rhododendron), and some Specimens of Quercus gemelli flora, showing exten­ lesser-known Gymnosperms (like sive buttressed root systems on trees 140 years ofage Agathis Dacrydium), are abundant. The at Bogm; West Java, Indonesia. lower zones differ in soil types, with ultra­ basic soils not uncommon, and this is around and discovers a mystetious world the prefeJTed soil type of some oaks like of unspoilt mountain forest, with Quercus lowii. rhododendrons blooming far away in the The abundance of tree species and distance, and tree ferns, orchids, pitcher the relative uniformity in leaf shape and plants and oaks in between. That n1akes habit makes it very difficult to discover up for leeches on your neck or the oaks amongst the dwarfs and giants mosquitoes in your sleeping bag. of the lower and upper montane forest. Common on the lower parts of the Viewing the bark helps, as most of the summit trail is Quercus lo,wii King, a Malaysian Fagaceae are recognisable in handsome tree with large acorns, which, the field by their characteristic light­ amazingly sometimes stand upright. In greyish, smooth and mottled bark. Still August it was fruiting season for this you need to find out what Fagaceae oak, which is hard to find in the forest. species you have discovered. Cockburn We saw Quercus lowii growing in small ( 1976) writes: "[For determination] groups or as single trees, nowhere however, it has been impossible not to abundant, but present up to 2500 m. The use fruits in many cases; these are often leaves are not that variable in size. There found scattered below the trees in the are two different types of Q. lowii with forest, and remain for some time." If there different foliar features. According to are no fruiting specimens meaning Soepadmo ( 1972) the leaves of the fallen acorns on the ground you will lowland form are glabrous while in the n1iss 95 percent of the oaks along the mountain form they are 1nostly way. That means that while climbing tomentose beneath. The acorns are so Mount Kinabalu, one looks more to the large that it is difficult to carry many. ground in search of acorns than to the They are ovoid and up to 3 em long. Out left or the right. Anyway this keeps you right on the trail. Occasionally one looks contd. on pg. 58

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a lowland species, growing from 850 m in Java to around 1800 m on Mt. Kinabalu. Its leaves vary greatly in shape, which 1nake it extremely difficult to identify only from foliar samples. Soepadmo ( 1972) described them as follows: 'Leaves thin-coriaceous, elliptic-lanceolate, rarely ovate, 5-16 by 1-5 em, base acute or roundish margin entire or ren1otely serrulate near the sharply acute or 0.5 - 1.5 em acuminate apex~ beneath with a sparse stellate tomentum, above glossy, glabrous; midrib and nerves pron1inent beneath, at -'X·- impressed above nerves 6-12 pairs, VI s::: 0 an angle of 45-60°, parallel, arcuating -..0 d t-, towards the margin; reticulation (\) -'X w·- obscure; petiole slender, 1-2.5 cn1, £ 0 ad axially furrowed." The acorns are +- 0 -C a. small and we found abundant quantities Fruits and bark of Quercus gemellitlora ar Bogor: on the ground in August that were quite West Ja\'a, Indonesia. a few weeks old. A tree at the Botanical of the Kinabalu area there is one record Garden at Bogor shows a typical of Q. !o'vvii from Mount Liang Gagang in coppicing habit with many branchlets western Kalimantan. Soepad1no writes rising from the ground a feature also to that this oak prefers ultra-basic soils. be seen on Mount Kinabalu. The tree at Quercus subsericea A. Camus is n1ore Bogor reaches 25 m. co1nmon on Kinabalu, but aU-in-all, Quercus gemell~f'lora Blume is a scattered. The distribution is wider than wide pread oak in Sabah and on Mount that of Q. lo~;vii and extends fron1 Kinabalu. Growing up to 2200 m, it is Sumatra, Java, and Banka, to the Malay more common in hill forest at 600 rn. Peninsula (where we discovered some Often this species grows along streams near Malacca) and Borneo. lt is In ore of on clay or ultra-basic soil overlying

Page 58 No.1 0 I Spring 2000 International Oaks

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·L- ,...,::J '+- 0 ~ ~ +­ L .:::J 0 u V) s::0"1 ·-~ c:::l L '• 0 ~------~ Quercus argentala Korth

sandstone or granite. Quercus in shape. No fruiting specimen was ge1nefl dlora is used locally as tin1ber for observed at Kinabalu in August. hou e construction. The bark contains Soepadmo ( 1972) writes that fruiting tannin and also is used by the local eems to be irregular. Two old specimens tribes. This n1edium-sized tree grows up were planted at Bogar Botanical Garden, to 30 m. The leaves are elliptical­ We t Java, datjng back to 1860. These lanceolate to elliptic-oblong, 5- 15 em x huge trees have impressive buttress 2-6 cn1, with a remotely sen·ulate margin roots, and the trunks reach 35 m in height. in the upper half, which n1akes this As mentioned by Soepadmo (1972), ftuits species easier to identify than some of and flowers have been observed here the other Malaysjan oaks. Acorns are together in August. large, 2.0 -5.5 em by 1-2 em, and conical contd. on pg . 60

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Another medium-sized tree, which oaks. The tree we saw also had occurs scattered on Mt. Kinabalu, is remarkably dense and prominent Quercus lineata Blutne. This species has lenticels on the branchlets. There are a wide distribution in Malaysia including also records of Quercus argentata from Sumatra, the Malay Peninsula, Java and Singapore, the Malay Peninsula, orne locations on Borneo. The leaves Sutnatra, Bangka, the Anarnbas Islands are si1nilar to those of _,Ouercus acuta in and West Java. size, with an acute tip of 0.5-1.5 em, with On the site of the Park headquarters the entire leave ovate-elliptic, 5-16 ctn there is an old Quercus by 2-6 em, and sometimes an pseudoverticillata Soepadmo growing. asymtnetrical acute base. Acorns are This was the only specimen we saw of rather small, conical-cylindrical, 2-3 by this oak, one of the rarest oaks of the 1-2 em. We did not find any fruiting world, which is endemic only to Mount specimens in August. Quercus lineata Kinabalu. It is a medium-sized tree is an itnportant source of me1npening comparable to the other oaks in this area, wood (the Malay name for wood u ed with an interesting bark, which is scaly for all kinds of mailer construction work, and peels off profusely into small including ho use construction). More rectangular pieces. This oak was named important is its use for erosion control in 1966 by E. Soepadtno, who is the when planted on steep slopes in leading authority on Malaysian mountainous regions. Fagaceae, and who named a few new One of the largest oaks in Malaysia is species . Other interesting species Quercus argentata Korthals, which growing near the Park headquarters are grows up to 40 m. The tree is widespread Acer lau rinu1n (one of the evergreen but uncomn1on, and can be found from tnaples), Trigonobalanus verticillata, as the lowlands (often in swamps) to 2700 well as many Castanopsis spp. and m on Kinabalu. On Kinabalu I saw a Lithocarpus spp. According to single tree at one location. The species Soepadmo (1972) the following other oak is n1ore or less easily recognisable species also occur on Mount Kinabalu, because the underside of the leaf is but we did not see any during our stay denseJy si 1very tomentose while the there in August 1998: upper side is glaucous. This makes this Quercus valdinervosa Soepadmo: tree quite distinct from other Malaysian widely disttibuted only on Borneo.

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Sarawak and Sabah. It is a typical low land spec1es,• growtng• in forests frorn 100- 500tn Quercus 0 ·-V) V) ::J kinabaluensis ct. 0"1- f... Soepadmo: a ::J ..0 V) fairly large tree up f... ~ +- ~ to 40 m tall. It a..- £ grows in forests V) +- ·-s::: ~ from 500-2600 ~ ·-L. m altitude on ::J IJ '+- ultra-basic soils. 0 Only two ~ • . • +- ...• .• L. • .• ...• • .. ::J ••• •• • 0 . : : . locations are u .• ... V)0"1 known: Mt. s:::

·~0 Kinabalu and the f... DL______~ neighbouring Quercus lowii King Bukit Ampuon. Qu erc us Quercus sumatrana Soepadmo: some treubiana von Seemen: grows on scattered locations on Su1natra Sumatra (near Palembang), scattered in (Bencoolen, Simalur) and Borneo Kalimantan, and on M o u n t (northern Sarawak, Western Sabah, in Kinabalu. The preferable locations are Kalimantan near Balikpapan and sandy waterlogged soils from 600-2100 Sa1narinda). Not much is known about m altitude. this species as there are just a handful Quercus el!neri Merrill: grows on of specimens in herbaria. Soepadmo sandy loatn or ultra-basic soil from (1972) wrote that "inflorescences are as Central Sumatra, the Malay Peninsula yet unknown.'' Also, Lemmens et al. and Borneo. First recorded in 1929, the ( 1995) wrote "Q. su1natrana is a still inflorescences are still not known. imperfectly known species of forest on sandy loam or basalt-derived soils, up There are a few good specimens of to 1300 m altitude." other Malaysian oaks in the Botanical Quercus merillii von Seemen: the only oak which grows in the Phillippines (Palawan only), and also scattered in contd. on pg. 62

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Garden ofBogor, tree in the West Java. This Botanical Botanical Garden, up to 40 Garden was m. Interesting are founded by the the large Dutch in the last di stinguished century, and buttress roots. covers an area of Quer c us 87 hectares in the oidocarpa has a middle of the large distribution city. The from peninsular Botanical Thailand down Garden is a must through Malay to visit and both Peninsula, west the arboretu1n and central Java, and herbarium and west -central have an Sumatra.ltgrows internati onal from 150-1500m reputation. Some altitude on oaks planted different soils around 1860 are such as clay, still growing in sandy loam or the garden, and granite.• the Garden offers It was on one of the rare Central Java chances to see where a group of tn a t u r e monkeys playing Malaysian oaks Drawings courtesy of Juri Menitsky, Petersburg, Russia around our outside the Quercus gemellif1ora Blome cottage turned forests. Besides out to be real the oaks already noted, there is one monsters. Whilst I was dozing in a chair 1nore species to be seen: in the morning sun, two monkeys Quercus oidocarpa Korthals is a large climbed down a tree to see what special

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Page 62 No.1 0 I Spring 2000 International Oaks goodies we had hidden in some bags. Botanical Gardens of Cibodas in Central But the rascals didn't just look into the Java, nor at Bali have native Quercus bags, no. They grabbed them and ca1Tied species planted. them 6 m high in a tree so they would There is definitely a lack of information have a safer place to investigate what about these often overlooked oaks. Little was inside. Guess what was in the bags? is known about flowering status, Fresh and germinating acorns from inflorescences, fruiting, etc. of some Bornean and Javanese oaks, ready to be lesser known species. Wouldn't it be flown to European greenhouses. That fitting for the International Oak Society morning Catmen (who accompanied me to help to establish a collection of on all the oak trips, under difficult Malaysian oaks in the region? conditions) had work enough to calm me down. Since that day I have an References unpleasant relationship with monkeys. 1. Cockburn, P.F. ( 197 6): Trees o_f'Sabah, There are a few other places to view Volume One. Sabah Forest Record 10. oaks on the Malay Peninsula, including Borneo Literature Bureau, Forest two locations with easy access. The Department Sabah. Can1eron Highlands in the middle of the 2. Lemmens, R.H.M.J.; Soeringa, I; Wong, Peninsula has scenic walks through tea W.C. (ed.), (1995): Plant Resources of· plantations to the upper hill zone where South-East Asia 5 (2). Timber Trees: sotne Quercus species are still growing. Minor commercial timbers. Backhuys Also, on the walk up Penang Hill at Publishers, Leiden, The Netherlands. Penang Island just south of Thailand. 3. Menitzldj, J. ( 1986): Dubi Asii (The The Arboretum of the Forest Research Oaks ofAsia). Nauka, Leningrad. Institute of Malaysia near Kuala Lumpur 4. Soepadmo, E. (1972): Fagacea; in: also offers the chance to see Malaysian • Flora Malesiana, Series I - Quercus species. These are nearly all the Spermatophyta, Vol. 7, part2, pp 265-403. locations where it is more or less easy to Wolters-Noordhoff Publishing, view native oaks, since neither the Groningen, The Netherlands.

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