Food Plants International - Plant Fact Sheets Cinnamomum camphora

Edible: Leaves, Bark, Root

A tree. It grows to 36 m high. It keeps its leaves throughout the year. It has a rounded crown 15 m wide. The trunk is short with scaly, grey bark. The trunk can be 3 m across. The whole plant has a strong camphor smell. The bark is yellow brown with cracks along it. The leaves are alternate. The leaves are pink when young. They turn green with age. The leaf stalk is slender. The leaf blade is 6-12 cm long by 2.5-5.5 cm wide. The flower cluster is in the axils of leaves. Flowers are green-white or yellow. The fruit are round. They are greyish-black.

It grows in tropical and subtropical locations. It needs a well drained, fertile, sandy loam. It does best in coller locations but needs a temperature above 9°C. In tropical Queensland it grows from 650-1000 m altitude. It is grown in China in areas without a severe winter. In Melbourne Botanical Gardens. It suits hardiness zones 9-11. In Yunnan.

Common Names: Camphor laurel, Ai-kanfor, Camphor, Chuang, Ho wood, Kamfer, Kamifaoro, Kapoor, Kapur, Karppuram, Karpur, Karpurammu, Kuqmiqsail, Long nao, Mushkapur, Noknamu, Payok, Payuk, Pohon kapur barus, Ravinsara, Re, Zhang, Zhangshu

Synonyms: 

Camphora camphora (L.) H. Karst.;
Camphora officinarum Nees;
Cinnamomum simondii Lec.;
Cinnamomum camphora (L.) Sieb. var. nominale Hayata ex Matsum;
Cinnamomum camphora (L.) Nees & Eberm. var. glaucescens (Braun.) Meissn.;
Laurus camphora L.;
Persea camphora Spreng.;
and others