Vernicia fordii seeds

LATIN NAME: Vernicia fordii

COMMON NAME: Tung Tree

The tung tree is the quiet workhorse of the old oil trade, and the big, heart-shaped leaves hide the poisonous, oil-rich fruits. The small, fast-growing, deciduous tree carries the large, heart-shaped leaves and the clusters of the small, white flowers with the pink or the red centres in the spring, to be followed by the round, green fruits with the thick shells, full of the oil-rich seeds. The pressed oil of the seeds has a very long record in the varnishes and the waterproofings of the old trade, and the tree is a fine, useful presence of the warm garden and the farm. It is a tree of the open, sunny, well-drained ground.

Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology

The tung tree is a practical subject of the plant science, and the oil-rich seeds have driven the studies of the drying oils and the industrial crops. The chemistry of the pressed seed oil, which dries to the fine, hard, waterproof film of the old varnish trade, has been studied closely, and it keeps showing up in the work on the industrial oils, the fast-growing trees and the members of the spurge family. The large, heart-shaped leaves and the small, fast-growing habit have also made it a fine garden tree, and the tung tree is a regular subject of the studies of the oil trees of the warm world.

Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications

The tung tree has been a quiet workhorse of the industrial oil trade. The round, green fruits carry the oil-rich seeds, and the pressed oil dries to the fine, hard, waterproof film that has a very long record in the varnishes, the paints and the waterproofings of the old trade, before the modern synthetics took over. The seeds are poisonous to eat, so the tree is one for the oil and the timber rather than the table, and the fruits are best kept out of the reach of the children. It has been written about in the industrial and the botanical papers for the drying oil and the long record of the trade, and it is a fine, useful tree of the open, sunny, well-drained garden.

The tung tree is one of the quiet workhorses of the oil trade, and the pressed oil of the seeds dries to the fine, hard, waterproof film of the old varnish. The seeds are poisonous to eat, so the tree is one for the oil and the timber rather than the table.

To grow the tung tree from seed, sow the large, round seeds about two centimetres down in pots of moist, free-draining soil, keep the pots in a warm, bright spot and water gently. The seedlings push through within a few weeks and grow on fast. With the sun, the warmth and the well-drained ground, the heart-shaped leaves will open through the spring.

Common Names: tung tree, tung oil tree, China wood oil tree, tung nut tree, aceite chino, Chinawood tree.

Tung oil comes from the seeds of  Aleurites fordii, a deciduous shade tree native to China. It belongs to the Euphorbia Family (Euphorbiaceae) along with the candlenut tree , another species with seeds rich in unsaturated oils. For centuries tung oil has been used for paints and waterproof coatings, and as a component of caulk and mortar. It is an ingredient in “India ink” and is commonly used for a lustrous finish on wood. In fact, the “teak oil” sold for fine furniture is usually refined tung oil. Some woodworkers consider tung oil to be one of the best natural finishes for wood.

Light: Nearly full sun is necessary for good growth.
Moisture: Tung can take drought, but it does much better in reliably moist soil.