Hanguana

Scientific name

Hanguana Blume

Common names

bakong, common hanguana, common susum, bakong rimba

Family

Hanguanaceae

Similar genera

Crinum, Lagenandra, Pandanus

Native distribution

Australia, tropical Asia and Malesia

Species cultivated

Hanguana major Airy Shaw

H. malayana (Jack) Merr. [previously known as Hanguana malayana subsp. anthelminthica (Blume) Backer]

Adventive distribution

information not available

Weed status

not weedy

Habit

large, terrestrialterrestrial:
(adj) growing on land as opposed to living in water
, free-floating, or emergentemergent:
(adj) (syn. emersed) with parts raised out of the water; extending up out of the water
herb

Brief description

Ascending to erect. Perennialperennial:
(adj) (of a plant) having a life cycle of more than two years
, robustly rhizomatousrhizomatous:
(adj) possessing rhizomes
. Leaves mostly basalbasal:
(adj) at or pertaining to the base, or point of attachment
, erect, leathery; becoming glabrousglabrous:
(adj) without hairs or scales
; leaf blades lanceolatelanceolate:
(adj) lance-shaped; widest point below the middle, tapering to the apex
; with sheathing petiolar bases, rolled unilaterally in budbud:
(n) an embryonic meristem (dividing cell-mass) enclosed in small, protective scales, that develops into a flower, leaf or another stem
; venationvenation:
(n) the arrangement of veins in a leaf
± parallel with prominent midribmidrib:
(n) the main or central vein, line or rib in a leaf or perianth segment
. Inflorescenceinflorescence:
(n) the arrangement of flowers on the floral axis
a terminalterminal:
(adj) at the apex
branched paniclepanicle:
(n) an indeterminate, branched (often much-branched) inflorescence; the ultimate units may be of a different inflorescence type
on a prominent pedunclepeduncle:
(n) the stalk of a flower cluster or inflorescence
. Flowers sessilesessile:
(adj) attached directly, without a stalk
; tepals 6, outer 3 shorter than inner 3, ovateovate:
(adj) egg-shaped in outline; generally with the broad end at or near the base
; green. Male flower stamens 6, inserted at tepaltepal:
(n) a member of the perianth, when it cannot be differentiated into a calyx and corolla; used primarily for monocot flowers
base; pistillodepistillode:
(n) a sterile pistil
small, central, with basalbasal:
(adj) at or pertaining to the base, or point of attachment
nectary. Female flower staminodes 6, lacking anthers, with nectaries; ovaryovary:
(n) a hollow organ at the base of the carpel of a flower in which ovules are produced
ovoid to globoseglobose:
(adj) spherical or nearly so
, stigmastigma:
(n) the portion of the pistil that is receptive to pollen
sessilesessile:
(adj) attached directly, without a stalk
, 3-lobed. Drupedrupe:
(n) fleshy indehiscent fruit in which the seed or seeds are surrounded by a hardened endocarp (as in a cherry)
blackish; ellipsoid to globular; stigmastigma:
(n) the portion of the pistil that is receptive to pollen
lobes persistentpersistent:
(adj) (of leaves etc,) remaining attached; not being dropped or falling off
at apexapex:
(n) the point farthest from the point of attachment; the tip (often pointed)
.

Natural habitat

wide range of wetland and terrestrialterrestrial:
(adj) growing on land as opposed to living in water
habitats; from swamps, marshes, margins of freshwater bodies, and ditches to pools

Additional comments

The family Hanguanaceae contains only this genus. Of the 10 species in Hanguana, the helophytic members are Hanguana major Airy Shaw, H. nitens Siti Nurfazilah, Mohd Fahmi, Sofiman Othman & P.C.Boyce, and H. malayana (Jack) Merr.