Native wild edible : Gnetum gnemon

Native wild edibles, What we grow

Sep 272012

Specimen : Cultivated trees

Local name : Bago

Trade name : Gnetum

Botanical name : Gnetum gnemon

Family : Gnetaceae

Specimen height : 4-6 meters

Fruiting season : Immature fruits observed in August and December

Traits : Dioecious; Drought tolerant; Evergreen; Shade tolerant; Small tree; Tolerant of infertile soils

Recommendations : Agroforestry; Backyards; Edible gardening; Fallow improvement; Farms; Hedging; Home gardens; Ornamental tree; Plantations; Public spaces; Roadside tree; Urban greening; Wildcrafting

Used for : Seed kernels are edible and are fried, roasted or boiled, or pounded and made into cakes for making Emping; New leaves are eaten as vegetable; Bark fibre is made into rope; Inner bark made into bow string; Timber for simple constructions, house beams or made into boxes and tool handles; Pulpwood; Fuelwood and charcoal

Native range : Malay peninsula, Indonesia, The Philippines, New Guinea and neighboring Pacific islands

National conservation status : Not threatened in the Philippines

Note : Gnetum gnemon var. gnemon is the specific species naturally found in the Philippines per Rojo’s ”Revised Lexicon of Philippine Trees”