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Stinky Bean

Parkia speciosa

Stinky Bean

Parkia speciosa

Stink bean or Parkia speciosa or being called as Petai in Indonesia is a native tree from Southeast Asia. Stink beans are popular in culinary ingredients in Southeast Asia dishes. It has a peculiar smell bean, but widely consumed by Southeast Asia people both raw and cooked, including in Indonesian. Due to the high demand in the market, it is included as one of fruit trees planted within our tree-planting program to boost local income.   

Environmental Impact

Tree Usage

Scientific name

Parkia speciosa

International name

Stink bean or bitter bean

Other name

Parkia, Pete or Petai (Indonesia), Peuteuy, Sah-taw (Thailand) 

Tree family

Fabaceae

Status

Least Concerned 

Carbon Sequestration

Each mature tree can adsorb 160.62 Kg of carbon 

Native distribution

Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand

Characteristic

The tree is up to 15-40 meters in height with diameter around 50-100 cm in diameter. It has hairy branchlets. 

Habitat

It grows in scattered lowland rainforests and occasionally in tall secondary forests, thriving in sandy, loamy, and podzolic soils. It can also be found in waterlogged areas, freshwater swamp forests, and along riverbanks. It typically grows at altitudes of 0 to 1,000 meters (up to 1,400 meters) and prefers an average annual temperature of about 24°C with rainfall between 1,000 and 2,000 mm. While it favors well-drained loamy or clay-loam soils, it can also adapt to waterlogged soils. 

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