Aquilaria Crassna Plant

Aquilaria crassna (commonly known as Indochinese Agarwood or Agarwood) belongs to the Thymelaeaceae family. It is a highly valuable tree native to Southeast Asia, including countries like Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, and Laos.

​1. Botanical Description

• ​Tree Structure: It is an evergreen, medium-to-large tree that typically reaches heights of 15 to 25 meters (and up to 30 meters under optimal conditions).
• ​Trunk & Bark: The trunk is straight, and its bark is smooth, light grayish-white, and highly fibrous, making it easy to peel.
• ​Leaves: Leaves are alternate, elliptical or lanceolate (spear-shaped), measuring 8–15 cm long and 4–6 cm wide, with a glossy dark green upper surface.
• ​Flowers & Fruit: It produces small, fragrant, yellowish-green flowers. The fruits are capsule-like (pear/oval-shaped) and split into two halves when mature.

​2. Resin & Oud Formation

• ​Induction Process: The core value of Aquilaria crassna lies in its wood reaction. When the tree gets injured, drilled, or infected by specific fungi (such as Phaeoacremonium parasitica), it produces a dark, aromatic resin as a defense mechanism.
• ​Agarwood/Oud: Over time, this dense resin saturates the heartwood, transforming the light, soft timber into heavy, dark, highly aromatic Agarwood (Oud Wood).

​3. Key Uses

• ​Perfumery & Incense: The resinous wood and extracted essential oils (Oud Oil) are widely used in luxury perfumes, traditional incense, and cultural or religious rituals.
• ​Traditional Medicine: Utilized in Ayurvedic, Traditional Chinese, and Thai medicine to relieve pain, digestive issues, respiratory conditions like asthma, and stress.
• ​Agarwood Tea: The non-resinous leaves are harvested to produce antioxidant-rich herbal tea.

​4. Cultivation & Growing Conditions

• ​Temperature: Thrives best in tropical and subtropical climates with temperatures ranging between 15°C and 32°C.
• ​Soil: Prefers well-drained, slightly acidic to neutral soil (pH 4.0 – 6.5).
• ​Sunlight: Requires partial shade (50–60%) during the young seedling stage in nurseries, but needs full sunlight as it matures.