Growing a Pong Pong Tree from Seed
I discovered a vendor called Lookmai Decor at Asiatique Night Market on the Chao Phraya River selling Pong Pong tree (Cerbera odollam) seeds on a recent visit when my parents were over from England.
I’d seen these large tennis ball sized seeds before as decorations but never knew what grew from them, so I decided to purchase two to take home with me.
After a week in Bangkok, Kanchanaburi and Erewan we finally made it back to Koh Chang and I dropped both seeds on top of some soil in pots, placed in a sunny spot and watered daily.
Within days a fresh shoot appeared and in a couple of weeks the tree stood at 20-30cm tall. Apparently they grow to 5-10 meters tall.
Pong Pong are a tropical tree native to Malaysia and Singapore but are also a common sight in Thai gardens. They are grown for their fragrant white scented flowers, glossy green leaves and to provide shade.
Pong Pong Tree AKA as the Suicide Tree
One interesting fact to note about the Pong Pong tropical tree is it also known as the Suicide Tree due to the single, mango-sized round fruits being highly toxic. The kernel inside the fibrous husk if ingested can cause fatal cardiac arrest due to the cyanide poison it contains.
Cerberin, a type of cardiac glycoside, has the ability to block the calcium-ion channels within the heart muscle.
Due to this beautiful trees poisonous fruit, the Pong Pong tree in Singapore has been fazed out of road side planting.
I’ll re-pot my trees in the coming months before deciding where I’ll anchor them to mother earth to grow in all their glory.
If you want to grow your own Pong Pong tree, seeds can now be purchased directly from our store. Alternatively next time you’re out and about keep an eye out for this interesting oversized round fruits or seeds. Happy planting.
Click Here to Buy Your Seeds
… and eight months later the pong pong trees are still in containers but are looking healthy and stand around 3ft high. When the rainy season starts we will plant them out into our land.
The Fast Growing Pong Pong Tree
We are now about a year into the life of our first two pong pong trees we grew from seed.
Both of our ornamental trees are planted out in our garden strategically placed to shade the house as they grow and mature.
As of this week they have started to bud and flower as can be seen from the photos below.
IMPORTANT NOTICE – PLEASE READ
We have always endeavoured to promote a positive and healthy lifestyle in everything we do. We are shocked and saddened to hear a customer tried to commit suicide with the seeds she purchased from our store.
Unfortunately, many household plants, flowers and seeds are poisonous when ingested. We have never advocated anything but growing plants for their aesthetics, to encourage pollinators to a garden or to produce an abundance of fresh organic food to enjoy.
However, due to recent circumstances brought to our attention, we are suspending the sale of all Pong Pong seeds until further notice.
Our thoughts are with her and her family.
Do You Feel Suicidal?
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is a national network of local crisis centers that provides free and confidential emotional support to people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Call: 1-800-273-8255 Website: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/
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Growing a Pong Pong Tree from Seed
