Bischofia javanica, or bishop wood, is a
plantspecies of the
familyPhyllanthaceae. It and the related Bischofia polycarpa are the only two members of
genusBischofia and
tribeBischofieae. These species are distributed throughout
southern and
southeast Asia to Australia and
Polynesia also in North America (brought to North America as a decorative plant but now considered to be an invasive species). The tree is commonly used by
tigers to
scratch-mark territory in the jungles of
Assam where it is locally called uriam. They also occur in southwestern, central, eastern, and southern China, and also Taiwan, where the indigenous people consider it a sacred tree.[1][2]
Uses
The dark red, dense wood is used as a building material for items ranging from furniture to bridges; it is durable but is difficult to air-dry. It is also ideal as firewood.[3]
^Li Bingtao (1994). Li Bingtao (ed.). "Bischofia Bl". Flora Reipublicae Popularis Sinicae. 44 (1). Science Press. Beijing, China: 184–188.
^
abKeppel, Gunnar;
Ghazanfar, Shahina A. (2011). Trees of Fiji: A Guide to 100 Rainforest Trees (third, revised ed.). Secretariat of the Pacific Community & Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit. pp. 138–9.
^Gardner, Simon, Pindar Sidisunthorn, and Vilaiwan Anusarnsunthorn. A Field Guide to Forest Trees of Northern Thailand. Bangkok: Kobfai Publishing Project, 2000.