Habitat characteristics and population of Syzygium cumini L. In private forest and customary forest of Yogyakarta

Abstract

In the development of Syzygium cumini as a prospective commodity for pharmaceutical raw materials, information on habitat characteristics is required as a basis for technical suitability to land. The study aimed to determine the habitat and population characteristics of S. cuminii in the private forest and customary forest. The population of S. cumini was grown in the field condition of the private forest and the customary forest in Yogyakarta Province. The sites of the plot samples were purposively chosen in a random following the standard method. The results showed that S.cumini trees were naturally grown at hilly/mountainous soil conditions, with a thin layer of soil, lots of rocks, and less fertile soil land based on the medium N, as well as low P and K contents. The trees were grown at an altitude below 500 meters above sea level, >1,000 mm year-1 rainfall, soil clay, the temperature of 25 °C to 30 °C, and mixed with other types of trees. The population of S.cumini trees in the private forest was 417 stands ha-1, higher than that of the customary forest (288 stands ha-1). S. cumini has more potential to be secured its existence in customary forest and to be developed in private forest.