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10 plants worth knowing

Malaysia

Malaysia lies at the heart of one of the oldest and richest rainforests in the world – on the Malay Peninsula and in northern Borneo. The hot, humid equatorial climate favours multi-layered dipterocarp forests with trees more than 80 m tall, while mountains such as Kinabalu are home to unique cloud forests. The country is famous for record-breaking plants – the largest flowers and pitcher plants – and also for its vast oil palm plantations.

Hover over a plant to see on the map where it grows.

where it grows

plants in our catalogue; native and endemic according to WCVP (Kew) · source
  1. Chinese hibiscus 1

    shrub · National flower of Malaysia

    cultivated

    Chinese hibiscus

    Hibiscus × rosa-sinensis

    The five red petals of the bunga raya stand for the five principles of the Rukun Negara – Malaysia’s national ideology.
  2. Rafflesia keithii 2

    flower

    native

    Rafflesia keithii

    Rafflesia keithii

    One of the largest flowers in the world, almost a metre across – it blooms for just a few days at the foot of Kinabalu.
  3. Giant Malaysian pitcher plant 3

    perennial

    native

    Giant Malaysian pitcher plant

    Nepenthes rajah

    The world’s largest pitcher plant – its traps hold more than 3 litres of fluid and sometimes even catch small mammals.
  4. Tualang 4

    tree

    native

    Tualang

    Koompassia excelsa

    One of the tallest trees in the tropics – wild bees can build as many as a hundred nests on its branches at once.
  5. African oil palm 5

    palm

    cultivated

    African oil palm

    Elaeis guineensis

    The African palm that transformed Malaysia’s landscape – the country is the world’s second-largest producer of palm oil.
  6. Durian 6

    crop

    native

    Durian

    Durio zibethinus

    Malaysians adore the “king of fruits” – the Musang King variety from Pahang is considered the most coveted durian in Asia.
  7. Rubber tree 7

    tree

    cultivated

    Rubber tree

    Hevea brasiliensis

    The Brazilian tree that built the wealth of colonial Malaya – rubber from Malayan plantations went into tyres all over the world.
  8. Rambutan 8

    crop

    native

    Rambutan

    Nephelium lappaceum

    The hairy red rambutan takes its name from the Malay word rambut – “hair”; it is one of Malaysia’s most popular fruits.
  9. Black pepper 9

    climber

    cultivated

    Black pepper

    Piper nigrum

    Sarawak grows almost all of Malaysia’s pepper, and Sarawak pepper is prized worldwide for its bold aroma.
  10. Pandan 10

    crop

    cultivated

    Pandan

    Pandanus amaryllifolius

    Pandan leaves give Malaysian food a vanilla-nutty aroma and a green colour – nasi lemak or kuih would be hard to imagine without them.