Beach Almond;Sea Almond – Terminalia catappa

Plant family: Combretaceae

Plant origin:

Fruit description: The fruit is a drupe 5 – 7cm long and 3 – 6cm wide, green at first, turning yellow, then red when ripe, containing a single seed. The fruit is edible, tasting slightly acidic.

Flowers: The flowers are distinct separate male and female flowers on the same tree. Both are 1cm in diameter, white to greenish, inconspicuous with no petals.

Growing conditions: The Beach Almond grows to 20 metres tall, with an upright, symmetrical crown and horizontal branches. As the tree gets older, its crown becomes more flattened to form a spreading, vase shape, providing deep shade. Its branches are distinctively arranged in tiers. The leaves are large, 15 - 25 centimetres long and 10 -14 centimetres wide, ovoid, glossy dark green and leathery. They are dry-season deciduous; before falling, they turn pinkish-reddish or yellow-brown.

Uses: The nut within the fruit is edible when fully ripe, tasting almost like almond. The fruit is a very good source of tannins.

Medicinal uses: The leaves are rich in tannins and flavenoids. Leaves are used in different traditional medicines for various purposes, including use as a herb to treat liver diseases, as a tea made from the leaves is to treat dysentery and diarrhoea.

Pollination requirements: Self-Pollinating.

Harvest time All year.

Plant relatives

Special features: The wood is red, solid and has high water resistance; it has been used in Polynesia for making canoes. Keeping the leaves in an aquarium is said to lower the pH and heavy metal content of the water. It's also believed that it helps prevent fungus forming on the eggs of the fish. It is used in this way by breeders in Thailand.

Grown by method: Seed Grown Pot size:

Plant growing Height and Width for pots or in the ground planting: Grows to 20 metres high by 15 metres wide if Planted in the Ground.

Shipping plant pot or planter bag size: