Dillenia indica, Linn.
Family : Dilleniaceae
Common Name : Elephant apple
Telugu Name : Kalinga, Uvya

General :

It is found in moist deciduous forests of Andhra Pradesh. It is an evergreen tree, identified by reddish grey bark peeling off in hard flakes and shortly serrate leaves. It thrives on deep sandy loams and does best on deep, rich moist soils along the streams and in depressions.

Flowering :

The large, handsome, white flowers appear from June to August. The petals fail quickly.

Fruiting :
The green fruits resembling large appeals, commence to ripe in October and continue to fall on the ground throughout the following cold and hot season.
Morphology of the Fruit / Seed :
Fruit is a pseudocarp, 7.5 to 12 cms in diam., fleshy, enclosed in the much thickened concave sepals; sedds reniform, sunk in a gelatinous pulp.
Seed Collection and Storage :
The fruits are collected from December to January and throughly dried in the sun. They are then hammered open and the seeds are separated winnowing. Viability of the seeds is very low.
Seed Biology :
No. of seeds per Kg.
Germination percentage
Plant percent
No. of seedlings per Kg. of seed
51,000 to 53,000
10
3
1500 to 1600
Pretreatment :
Not required.
Nursery Technique :
The seeds are sown in nursery beds or boxes during May and watered. The fruits can also be left on the ground till the beginning of the rains when the seeds germinate inside them. The seedlings thus obtained are then removed and planted in the nursery beds.