Now nearly devoid of its once verdant forests, Davao used to be a botanical garden, drawing scientists into its fold and inspiring adventurers to write travelogues and books that have become important sources of information of flora that then thrived in the region.
Dr. William Henry Brown, an American plant physiologist teaching Botany at the University of the Philippines, was one of those who extensively documented Davao’s plants.
In an article titled Minor Products of the Philippine Forests, published in the Bureau of Forestry’s Bulletin No. 22 in 1920, he cited the characteristics of plants found in Davao, including species that grew in mangrove swamplands and the variety of palms endemic to the region.
Known to Davao natives as bangkau or bakhau among Visayans, the Rhizophora candelaria is described as “leathery in texture green and shiny, and oblong-elliptic in shape. The apex is pointed or ends in a thornlike prolongation of the midrib. The stalks of inflorescences are found in the axils of fallen leaves and are shorter than the peoples of the leaves.”
Another mangrove species is the Avicennia officinalis Linn., locally known as the api-api or piapi. Found mostly on the outer sector of the swamp, the tree’s “bark is usually light or brown and rather smooth but finely checked by small cracks… The wood is hard, heavy, brittle, but difficult to split, having an exceedingly crossed spiral grain.”
In the 1960’s, this plant thrived in a mangrove area separating Soliman Street, Davao City, from the secondary road known to old-timers as Rosemarie, named after a popular hair salon. Usually, it grew alongside the ubiquitous pagatpat, scientifically known as Sonneratia apetala.
Known to botanists as Actinorhytis calappaia Wendl., the Bagobos call this palm plant as tangalo. The tree has “a handsome, tall slender, pinnate-leafed palm, widely distributed in the Malay archipelago.” It was first introduced in Davao, then a district.
The Bagobo tribe calls this palm species ungang. Scientifically known as Plectocomia Elmeri Becc., the plant is a large climbing palm with yellowish green matured stems and found in the dense woods on the southeast part of Mount Apo at an elevation of 1,000 meters.
The Guadua Philippinensis Gamble, a rare bamboo species with culms that are thin-walled. The kuman of the Bagobos, meanwhile, is known scientifically as Gnetum Gnemon L., a tree with a height of 10 meters, has a bark that can made into a rope, and has fruits that are edible when cooked, in the same way that its cooked young leaves are eaten as vegetable.
Known in Davao region as the pandan or Pandanus tectorius Soland, the plant is abundantly found along the seashore and adjacent areas but not very far inland. It is comparatively of little economic value save for its leaves that can be split into strips and made into mats and baskets, and, when bleached, for weaving mats.
The natives called it liba, but botanists call it scientifically as Allaenthus Glaber Warb. It is a medium-sized tree with a height of 30 meters, and has rounded leaves at the base. The young leaves and flowers are cooked for food while its fibrous materials are made into ropes that are more durable than average and having a tensile strength of 231 kilos per square centimeter.
Brown also identified Artocarpus elastica Reinw., known locally as the tugup, as endemic to Davao region and was exported to Java and Europe. In 1902, the bast of the plant was sold at 60-70 cents in Holland and some were later exported to Rotterdam. The plant “is a stately tree [whose] leaves are alternate, crowded, obtuse a both ends, occasionally lobed towards the apex… The seeds are embedded in a whitish, more or less gummy pulp of a delicious tart flavor. They are about the size of peanuts, are eaten roasted, and in flavor almost resemble peanuts.”
The malibago, known scientifically as Hibiscus Tiliaceus Linn, is a much-branched tree with fibrous materials made into fairly strong ropes. Farmers used its fiber for tying cattle or making hog traps. It is easily propagated by means of cuttings, has leaves that are alternate, hairy, and somewhat rounded, and flowers that are yellow with a purple center.
Known as the silk cotton tree, the kapok, or Ceiba Pentandra (L.), has seed pod fibers that “are very extensively used for stuffing pillows and mattresses… and are employed in making life preserves.” From 1917 to 1199, Davao exported 56,632 kilos of kapok valued at PhP20,194.
Kleinhovia Hospita L., known in Davao as tamanag or bitan-ag to Cebuano migrants, is best known for use in tying bundles, tethering carabaos and horses, or making halters. It is a “medium-sized tree with large, alternate, heart-shaped leaves which have toothed margins,” with “flowers that are small, pink, and are borne in panicles terminating in the branches… The young leaves are eaten as greens.”
Popular among the natives as kabislak, the Pterospermum diversifolium Bl. has a bark that can be used for dyeing, and its bast is colored pinkish cinnamon. Its “leaves are alternate, hairy, oblong, heart-shaped at the base, abruptly pointed at the tip… The flowers are white… and occur either singly or in pairs in the axils of the leaves. The fruit is a woody, five-angled capsule about 15 centimeters long.”
On the other hand, the Sterculia Foetida Linn., known in Davao as kurumpang, has seeds that are edible and can be eaten as purgative. The oil it produces can be used for lighting and culinary purposes. Its seeds are found in large, red capsules; the wood is colored gray; and the flowers dull yellowish or purplish. Rounding up the count is Davao’s aligpagi, scientifically known as Phaleria Perrottetiana, a small tree with bright red fruits, and a bark that’s good for ties.
