Timber of Gelam (Melaleuca cajuputi Powell)

Gelam (Melaleuca cajuputi Powell) belongs to the family Myrtaceae. Other better-known members of the family include kelat (Syzygium spp.), gelam bukit or  china maki (Leptospermum spp.), mempoyan (Rhodamnia spp.), pelawan (Trifitaniopis spp.) and Eucalyptus (not indegeneous). Locally the timber of gelam is also known as kayu putih.

Gelam grows as large shrub to tall evergreen tree of 24 m height, often with twisted trunk (Plates 1 & 2). However, trees grow in park and along roadsides have been found to be fairly straight producing trunk of more than 45 cm in diameter.

The species of Melaleuca occurs naturally in swamp forests between the old raised sea beaches, and is a characteristic feature of the deep seasonal swamps of the coastal alluvial flats behind the sandy beaches and the mangroves, in particular in the states of Kedah, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Kelantan and Terengganu. In Melaka, the trees of gelam have been used as a road-side shade trees in low lying stretches where they cross rice-swamps, but the crown is not enough to shade wide road. The trees can be easily recognised by their distinctive thick papery flaky bark (Plate 3) that can be peeled off easily.