ASEAN’s 100 Most Precious Plants

Lapis, A. B., M.E. David, C. G. Reyes & B.S. Audije. 2004. ISBN 971-8986-55-3.

This book is ARCBC’s contribution to the 2003 ASEAN Environment Year Celebration. It is an emblematic initiative in taking stock of the 100 plant species that are indigenous to Southeast Asia and deeply rooted in the region’s diverse customs, cuisine, crafts, commerce and cures.


The ASEAN’s 100 Most Precious Plants is organised into 12 categories of plant uses: edible, fibres and barks, fruits, grain, horticulture, medicine, poisons, resins and saps, scientific wonder, spices, timber and useful flowers and leaves. While most of the plants in the book have multiple uses, they are singularly categorised under the most salient use. The uses of various plant parts described in the book illustrate the depth and the extent of their importance to the lives of the ASEAN peoples.
Some plants are presented at species level and others, at genus level. Each species or genus is described based on its most notable and distinct features.