Corypha Utan Research Articles

Amylolitic microbes of nira and laru from Timor Island, East Nusa Tenggara

Thirty nine isolates of microorganisms were isolated from the nira (palm sap from inflorescence stalk of Corypha utan Lamk. or Borassus flabellifer L., laru (fermented palm sap) and their ability to produce amylase has been done. The result of screening showed that eight isolates were positive in the starch iodine test, but their amylolitic activities relatively lower. The amylolitic activities show that laru is not potential source of microbial amylases. In liquid media containing 2% soluble starch, three isolates of fungi (LG4, LMS1, and MI-1) produceamylase and reached a maximum activity at 3 days fermentation, with levels 56.31x102 , 46.78x102 and 41.49x102 U/mL (one unit activity is define as micromoles of glucose produce per mL per minute). Two yeast isolates which isolated from laru or kayu laru were showed their ability to ferment the gula aer and produce ethanol, CO2 and some organic acids, it were identified as Pichia anomala. The other bacterial isolates were identified as Bacillus licheniformis BL43, Chromobacterium sp., Lactobacillus sp., Micrococcus roseus (Staphylococcus roseus), and Bacillus coagulans, its show the lower amylase activities.© 2008 Jurusan Biologi FMIPA UNS Surakarta.Key words: palm sap (nira), fermented palm sap (laru), amylase, fermentation, East Nusa Tenggara

Sifat Fisik dan Mekanik Batang Gewang (Corypha utan Lamk.) dari Nusa Tenggara Timur Physical and Mechanical Properties of Gewang (Corypha utan Lamk.) Stem from East Nusa Tenggara

Gewang ( Corypha utan Lamk.) is an important palm grown wild in the savannah of East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia. The genus Corypha , belong to Arecaceae or Palmae consist of about 8 species distributed from tropical Africa to India, tropical Asia, Indochina, Malaysia, and Quensland. Corypha grows in lowland of very dried climate and savannah. The local people have used this palm traditionally for many purposes to fulfill their daily needs. Trunks are used for producing starch for food, cattle food ( putak ), building material for housing, furniture and fence. Basic properties of stem from Gewang palm are identified according to the height and depth of samples in the stem. The properties identified are physical properties including density, water absorbtion and shrinkage on thickness and length direction; mechanical properties including modulus of elasticity (MOE), modulus of rupture (MOR) and maximum crushing strength pararel to grain. Almost all properties tested are affected significantly by the height and depth of samples in the Gewang stem, where the influence of depth stem factor is higher than the height stem factor. Gewang stem from the bottom part of the stem produces better properties than middle and top part, indicates by a higher density, lower water absorption and shrinkage values. Similarly, physical properties of the outer part Gewang stem is higher than those in the medium and center parts. The mechanical properties result shown same phenomena that the bottom part of Gewang stem produces better properties than middle and top part, indicates by a higher modulus of elasticity, modulus of rupture and maximum crushing strength pararel to grain values. Similarly, mechanical properties of the outer part Gewang stem is higher than those in the medium and center parts.

Review: Persistent pioneers; Borassus L. and Corypha L. in Malesia

Eagleton G.E. 2016. Review: Persistent Pioneers; Borassus L. and Corypha L. in Malesia. Biodiversitas 17: 716-732. This review traces advances in taxonomic and ethnobotanic understanding of the genera Corypha L. and Borassus L. gained from research since the time of publication of “Harvest of the Palm; Ecological Change in Eastern Indonesia’’ by James J. Fox in 1977. It posits testable hypotheses arising from the literature: firstly, that both genera were present in the furthest parts of island Southeast Asia prior to a definitive Indianized cultural expansion in the first millennium CE.; secondly, that two of their species ̶ “lontar” Borassus flabellifer L. and “gewang” Corypha utan Lam. ̶ were significant components of pre-agricultural economies of the archipelago, but that their full economic exploitation benefited from later cultural stimuli from the Indian subcontinent. To test these hypotheses, lines of research with potential benefits for local economies in semi-arid Indonesia are proposed.