Sagwan (Teak) Tree (Tectona grandis): Where It Grows in India and How to Plant It
Tectona grandis
Sagwan or teak (सागवान, सागौन) is Tectona grandis, India's best-known timber tree, native to the forests of the peninsula and central India and reaching into southern Rajasthan. How to plant it and when, how to recognise it, how fast it grows, care for the first three years, and what to watch out for.
Cultural significance
Teak has a long place in India's forest history. The genus name Tectona comes from tekka, the old Malabar name for the tree (ICRAF), and the English word teak sounds much the same. Kerala Tourism describes Conolly's Plot at Nilambur in Kerala, planted in 1846 under H.V. Conolly, then Collector of Malabar, from an idea by Chathu Menon, as the world's oldest teak plantation. ICRAF lists ship decking, boat building and railway sleepers among the classic uses of its wood.
Sources: ICRAF Agroforestree Database 4.0: Orwa C. et al. (2009). Tectona grandis; Kerala Tourism (Govt of Kerala): Conolly's Plot, Nilambur, oldest teak plantation
This article was prepared with AI assistance and checked by the GreenEye team against the sources shown in each section.
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