How to Grow and Care for Dillenia

Elephant apple is so-named since its very hard, high-growing fruits have evolved to be eaten and propagated by elephants. Due to the decline in native elephant populations, the seeds have subsequently developed to soften on the forest floor, becoming available to smaller herbivores. The strong timber from this tree is used for telegraph poles and in house construction.

Golden guinea tree (Dillenia alata) is a tree native to New Guinea and nearby regions. The specific Latin name alata means winged and refers to the plant's winged leaf stalks or petioles. Golden guinea tree fruits provide food for native moth and bird species, including the Eclectus parrot.

Dillenia turbinata is an evergreen tree native to parts of China. It offers dark green leaves and pretty, five-petaled flowers in shades of yellow and yellow-white. In its natural habitat, it thrives in wet valleys and evergreen forests. Dillenia turbinata is not often grown in home gardens.

A tree some 6-15m tall with tortuous twigs the bark is grayish and smooth exfoliating. Branches are glabrous and stout. Leaves are deciduous petiolate oblong to obovate-oblong glabrous 30-5cm long flowers appear before the leaves 2–7 in number yellow coloured petals flowering starts in spring-spring. Fruit is globose 0.5cm in diameter black ovoid seed exarillate. On islands of the Mekong in northeastern Cambodia the tree flowers from winter to spring fruits in spring and the leaves grow from spring to fall.

Simpoh ayer (Dillenia suffruticosa) is a large evergreen shrub that is an effective colonizer of sandy soils since its deep roots can reach underground water. The plant flowers perpetually with five-petalled yellow blooms. The large leaves are commonly used in Southeast Asia for wrapping and eating food.