Manilkara hexandra

{{Short description|Species of tree}}

{{Speciesbox

| image = Manilkara hexandra 1.jpg

| image_caption =

| genus = Manilkara

| species = hexandra

| authority = (Roxb.) DubardAnn. Mus. Colon. Marseille ser. 3, 3:9, fig. 2. 1915 {{GRIN | access-date=December 29, 2009}}

| synonyms = Mimusops hexandra Roxb. (basionym)

| synonyms_ref = Pl. Coromandel 1:16, t. 15. 1795 {{GRIN | Mimusops hexandra | 24454 | access-date = December 29, 2009}}

}}

File:Fruits of Manilkara hexandra.jpg

Manilkara hexandra is a tree species in the tribe Sapoteae, in the family Sapotaceae. It is native to much of the Indian subcontinent: Bangladesh, India, and Sri Lanka; Indo-China: Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam. Its vernacular names vary regionally; for example "Palu", "Palai"(பாலை) in Tamil or "Rayan" (පලු) in Sinhalese, "Kshir Kul" or "Khir Kul" ("ক্ষীর কুল" বা "খির কুল") in Bengali. It is locally known as the Khirni tree in parts of Bangladesh and India.{{cite journal | doi=10.1007/s10722-012-9863-1 | volume=59 | issue=6 | title=Socio-economic and horticultural potential of Khirni [Manilkara hexandra (Roxb.) Dubard]: a promising underutilized fruit species of India | journal=Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution | pages=1255–1265|year = 2012|last1 = Malik|first1 = S. K.| last2=Choudhary | first2=Ravish | last3=Kumar | first3=Susheel | last4=Dhariwal | first4=O. P. | last5=Deswal | first5=R. P. S. | last6=Chaudhury | first6=Rekha | bibcode=2012GRCEv..59.1255M | s2cid=15072134 }}{{Cite web |url=http://www.fruitipedia.com/khirni.htm |title=Khirni |access-date=2016-04-02 |archive-date=2018-09-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180909170238/http://www.fruitipedia.com/khirni.htm |url-status=dead }} In the Tamil language it is called Ulakkaippaalai or Kanuppaalai.{{Cite news|url=http://indiabiodiversity.org/species/show/31542|title=Manilkara hexandra (Roxb.) Dubard|newspaper=India Biodiversity Portal|access-date=2016-11-03}}

Manilkara hexandra is a slow-growing but fairly large evergreen species. It grows in tropical and temperate forests. The tree typically attains some 12 to 25 metres of height and one to three metres in trunk circumference. The bark is grayish and rough.

The wood is hard, durable, and heavy; the density is variously reported as ranging from about 0.83 to 1.08 tonnes per cubic metre, partly depending on the degree of drying.[http://www.wood-database.com/wood-identification/by-scientific-name/ The Wood Database] It is used for heavy structural work, gate posts, and big beams.{{ cite book |title=Timber and its uses |author=Forest Department |place=Sri Lanka |year=1962}} but also is used for turning and carpentry in spite of the difficulties of working with such dense wood.[http://www.wood-database.com/bulletwood/ Wood database: Workability]

It is used as rootstock for Manilkara zapota, and its own fruit is edible.