Sal or Shorea robusta

 

Shorea robusta is an evergreen tree with an elongated crown when young, becoming more rounded as the tree ages. It can grow up to 50 metres tall in fertile soils, but is more likely to be 20 - 25 metres tall in poorer soils. The straight, cylindrical bole can be unbranched for up to 25 metres and up to 200cm in diameter

Sal is a very important multi-purpose tree. It is one of the main commercial timbers of India, being harvested from the wild for local use and export. It also yields a resin that is traded and an oil that is used locally as well as being exported in large quantities. It addition, it supplies tannins, an edible seed and medicines for local use. The leaves are used commercially for making plates and containers

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The sal tree is often the dominant species in the forests of the sub-Himalayan tract, but overutilization of it for fuel, timber, fodder etc is becoming a cause for conservation concern in some areas

The seeds are a source of 'sal butter', an oil that is used in cooking like ghee and as a substitute for cocoa butter in making chocolate

The resin is valued for its use in the treatment of dysentery, gonorrhoea, boils and toothaches

The leaf juice is used in the treatment of dysentery

 The leaves are warmed and used as a poultice on areas of the body that are swollen

 They have a quick effect[. They are also applied to the stomach of children with dysentery

The oil from the seed is used to treat skin diseases

When tapped, the tree exudes large quantities of a whitish, aromatic, transparent resin known as 'lal dhuna'. It is used to caulk boats and ships and as incense. In some places in the Upper Tista forests of the Darjeeling District, large
pieces, often 450 - 600 cubic centimetres in size, are found in the ground at the foot of the trees[

The leaves are widely used for making plates, cups and for wrapping

An oil obtained from the seed is used for illumination

The bark is a source of tannins

The heartwood is a dark, reddish brown; the thin band of sapwood whitish. The grain is strongly spiralled and rather coarsely structured. The wood is hard, heavy, very durable and highly resistant to termite attack. Seasoning can present problems. The wood is easy to saw, but because of its high resin content, it is difficult to plane and turn; it has a tendency to split when nails are driven into it. This important Indian hardwood is especially well suited for constructing structures subject to heavy stress in houses etc, it is also used in hydraulic engineering, ships and railway cars, poles, railway ties and posts, simple interior finishing such as window frames and floors, and many other applications[

. For making household or agricultural implements, the coppice shoots are used

The wood is an important local source of fue