Che-Chem Wood
Exotic elegance
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| Woods | ||
| Black poisonwood | ||
| Scientific name: Metopium brownei Family: Anacardiaceae |
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The black poisonwood tree grows up to a height of 80 feet with a trunk diameter of about 25 inches. It is a deciduous tree with imparipinnate compound leaves. It bears yellow flowers and red berries, which are a food source for many birds. The sap contained in the thin, reddish brown bark is extremely toxic and causes blisters, rashes and swelling on the skin. It can be seen oozing out of the bark when it is cut or damaged. Easily recognizable by their wavy shape, the leaves are also toxic. The cure for the poisonwood tree is the gumbolimbo tree, which is often found growing close to the poisonwood. The species is reported to occur in the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Jamaica, Guatemala, Belize and from the Yucatan peninsula to Veracruz in Mexico. |
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Black poisonwood is quite hard, dense, and tight-grained. The color ranges from amber to dark brown, often with contrasting streaks. Getting lumber from the poisonwood tree is risky, and one must know how to remove the bark and sap before proceeding. This attractive timber makes beautiful furniture, as it has good lustre and durability. Other applications are flooring, stair works, mouldings, turnery and musical instruments. |
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| Cabbage bark | ||
| Scientific name: Andira inermis Family: Leguminosae |
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The cabbage bark tree or cabbage tree is a nitrogen-fixing tree growing to a height of 120 feet. With its dense and spreading crown, it is a popular ornamental tree in the tropical countries. It produces bright pink flowers in dense terminal bunches which are highly fragrant. It also produces small roundish fruits which contain a single large seed. One unique feature of this tree is that its flowers only bloom once every two years. It is an evergreen tree with the foliage continually being replaced throughout the year. The leaves are compound and alternately arranged along the branches. The bark is reported to have vermifuge, purgative and narcotic properties. It may cause vomiting, fever, delirium and even death, if used in large doses. The cabbage bark tree occurs from southern Mexico to Peru, Bolivia and Brazil. It has been introduced in the West Indies, in Florida and Africa. It grows primarily in forests along rivers but can also be found in drier areas. |
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The wood is very hard, heavy, and very resistant to attack by fungi and termites. The sapwood is pale brown to greyish yellow and usually clearly demarcated from the yellowish-brown to dark reddish-brown heartwood. The lumber is used locally for heavy construction, bridges, railroad tracks, waterfront docks and small boats. It is also used to make furniture, parquets, billiard cues or umbrella handles. |
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| Caribbean pine | ||
| Scientific name: Pinus caribaea Family: Pinaceae |
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Caribbean pine grows to a height of 100 feet with trunk diameters of 30 to 40 inches, occasionally larger. Boles can be free from branches up to 70 feet high. It is an evergreen tree whose needle-shaped leaves are yellowish green to dark green, linear and rigid. They occur in clusters at the end of the branches and contain an essential oil used in perfume products and air fresheners. The cones are reddish brown, cylindrical or conical. The bark is gray to brown and fissured. The resin helps protect the tree from insect attacks, by quickly sealing any cuts made in the bark. It has been used as a glue, insect repellent and to repair dugout canoes, as the Maya did. It is now used in some consumer goods as soap, disinfectants, medicines, paints and varnishes. Caribbean pine is well-known for its ability to grow in a wide range of soils and for its fast growth: this tree grows up to 30 feet high in three years. Caribbean pine is native to Mexico, Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Bahama Islands, and Cuba. It was widely introduced as a plantation species throughout the world. It is commonly used in forestry projects in tropical areas. |
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Lumber from pine trees is the most widely available type of lumber. The wood is moderately light, with a straight grain. The texture is somewhat coarse. It has a yellow and brown color and a strong resinous odour. Pine is a softwood and is easy to work. It resists decay, disease and rotting. It does not warp or bend. When treated, pine is ideal for painting. The treated pine does not absorb water and therefore the grain will not raise. The uses of pine wood are general light and heavy construction, carpentry, flooring, joinery, utility poles, boat building and paper products. |
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| Goncalo alves | ||
| Scientific name: Astronium graveolens Family: Anacardiaceae |
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Goncalo alves grows up to 80 or 100 feet tall, with a trunk diameter of 25 to 40 inches, depending on habitat and growing conditions. The tree is symmetrical with a straight bole, and a spreading or round dense crown. The bark is dark gray, and peels off in pieces revealing large, light-colored circles of inner bark. The leaves are compound, imparipinnate, and alternate. The leaflets are pointed at the tip and toothed. Crushed leaves have a clear mango-like smell. Some individuals of this species drop all their leaves toward the end of the dry season, and most drop some leaves. Prior to falling, leaves are bright red, and even in the middle of the wet season, there are typically a few red leaves in the crown. Small greenish-yellow flowers occuring in panicles are produced in February and March. The fruit is a blue-black berry, with a single seed. Goncalo alves grows plentifully in the forests of Mexico, Central America and in South American countries including Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela and Brazil. It does not tolerate saturated or heavy clay soils but grows well in poorly drained limestone or rocky and alluvial soils. |
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Goncalo alves is a very heavy wood made of contrasting hard and soft material. The grain varies from straight to intercrossed. The texture is fine and homogenous. While the sapwood is very light in color, the heartwood is a mix of russet brown, orange brown or reddish brown, richly mottled with darker streaks. The color of the wood deepens with exposure and age. In addition to its strength and density, this wood is extremely durable, weathers well and is highly resistant to moisture. Goncalo alves is highly favored as a fine furniture and cabinet wood. It is also used for turnery, marquetry, carving, decorative veneers and specialty items such as knife handles, archery bows or billiard cues. It is also among the most outstanding heavy construction timbers. |
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| Gumbo-limbo | ||
| Scientific name: Bursera simaruba Family: Burseraceae |
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Gumbo-limbo is a large, fast-growing tree that can grow up to 100 feet high, with a thick trunk, massive branches and a spreading, rounded crown. Gumbo-limbo is planted for shade and ornamental use. One of the most remarkable properties of this deciduous tree is its ability to root from branches cut from it. The bark is light reddish-brown, thin, papery, and scaly. It has a smooth, oily look and peels off in sheets to reveal a greenish-brown layer beneath. The shiny dark green leaves are compound, imparipinnate and alternate. The small greenish-white flowers, which occur in panicles, produce dark red fruits. The aromatic sap is used in home remedies, while the leaves are brewed into a medicinal tea. The gummy, turpentine-scented resin is used in some places for making glue and varnish. Gumbo-limbo is native to Mexico, Guatemala, northern South America, West Indies and Florida. It adapts to a variety of habitats, from dry to moist. It is found in tidewater areas and mixed forests. |
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Gumbo-limbo is a light, soft and spongy wood. The color of the heartwood and sapwood ranges from whitish yellow to pale gray. The wood is used for fence posts that have been known to take root in the ground and grow! It is also used as firewood and for the building of rural houses. Small wood products such as matchsticks, toothpicks, charcoal, boxes, crates or tool handles are also made from gumbo-limbo. |
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| Honduras mahogany | ||
| Scientific name: Swietenia macrophylla Family: Meliaceae |
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Honduras mahogany, also called “big-leaf mahogany”, is a large tree growing up to 150 feet tall and over 6 feet in diameter, with a broad rounded symetrical crown. The bark is gray and smooth when young, turning dark brown, ridged and flaky when old. Mahogany is a deciduous tree. Its leaves are alternate and compound, with three to six pairs of leaflets. The tree produces small, fragrant flowers, with five white petals, occuring in axillary clusters. Flowering usually takes place when trees are leafless. Only one flower of the inflorescence develops into a fruit, the others being aborted. The fruit is a pear-shaped capsule containing numerous winged seeds that are dispersed by the wind. Honduras mahogany has a wide geographical and ecological range, growing naturally in wet and dry tropical forests and on a variety of soil types. It is native to southern Mexico, Central and South America, to Venezuela and Brazil. |
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Honduras mahogany is considered to be one of the most precious of tropical hardwoods for its outstanding qualities. It is easy to work and displays a beautiful reddish sheen when polished. The heartwood varies considerably in color. It may be yellowish, reddish, pinkish or salmon colored when freshly cut, maturing to a deep rich red or brown color with age. The sapwood is distinct and described as whitish or yellowish-white in color. The grain is straight or wavy, often with an attractive figure. The texture is fine to coarse, and uniform. Originally preferred for making canoes and ships at a domestic level, it is now principally used for fine furniture, cabinetry, interior finishing, flooring, musical instruments, inlays, turning and carving. |
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| Macawood | ||
| Scientific name: Platymiscium yucatanum Family: Leguminosae |
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Macawood trees are reported to reach heights of 100 to 130 feet, with trunk diameters of 40 inches or more. Boles are straight, cylindrical and buttressed. They are often clear for about two-thirds of their total height. The crown is small compared to the height of the tree and usually round. The light gray bark is very thick and longitudinally fissured. The sap is colourless. Macawood is a deciduous tree. At the beginning of the dry season, it sheds all its leaves at the same time, and within two or three days, the tree is completely bare. The dark green leaves are compound, imparipinnate and opposite. The flowers bloom at the beginning of the year, when the tree is bare of leaves. They are yellow or orange and can be so numerous that they cover completely the crown. The fruits are tiny, with a membranous and fragile texture. They contain a single seed and take one year before ripening. Macawood is a nitrogen-fixing tree, common in humid areas. The species is found from southern Mexico to the Brazilian Amazon region, and in Trinidad. |
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Macawood is very hard, heavy and dense with a tight grain and a fine texture. It is known to be one of the finest woods in the world. Despite its high density, it is easy to work. Another remarkable property of this wood is its exquisite and sweet smell, when it has not been varnished or painted. The color of the heartwood varies from reddish brown to slight yellowish-orange with dark stripes. The light blonde sapwood contrasts beautifully with the heartwood. Macawood is known to be very stable and very durable. It is rated as highly resistant to attack by decay, fungi, insects and termites. It could last between 15 and 25 years in contact with the ground and without any chemical protection. Macawood is frequently used in fine furniture and cabinet work. Other uses are musical instruments, turnery, joinery and specialty items like violin bows or billiard cues. |
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| Nargusta | ||
| Scientific name: Terminalia amazonia Family: Combretaceae |
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Nargusta is a fast-growing, tall tree, reaching 100 to 140 feet in height in the natural forest, with a trunk of 3 to 5 feet in diameter. Older specimens may sometimes reach 230 feet high. Trees with diameters over 20 to 25 inches are often hollow. The trunk develops uniform and straight boles of 60 to 70 feet above the large buttress roots. The crown is large, stratified or pyramidal. The bark is very thin and constantly peels off, like the gumbo-limbo. It is thought to be a strategy to prevent damage from heavy epiphytes affixing themselves to it. The bark is rich in tannin and is used to tan and dye animal hides. Nargusta is a deciduous tree with simple shiny green leaves, concentrated at the end of the branches. The flowers are greenish or white, aromatic, and are visited by bees and other insects. The tree blooms and bears fruit from March to June. The natural growth range of nargusta is reported to extend from southern Mexico southward through Central America and into tropical South America. Widely distributed in rain forests, it is a dominant species in broad-leaved forests. |
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Nargusta wood is hard and dense, with a medium texture and intercrossed and irregular grain. It is variable in color from yellowish cream to golden brown. It typically has prominent reddish brown stripes. The sapwood is yellowish in color and is not clearly demarcated from the heartwood. The wood has good natural durability, especially when not in contact with the soil. Because of its beauty, nargusta is used for furniture and cabinet work, boat building, turnery, flooring, stair works, paneling, moldings and doors. Locally, the timber of nargusta has been used for general construction, bridges, railway ties and tool handles. |
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| Prickly yellow | ||
| Scientific name: Zanthoxylum riedelianum Family: Rutaceae |
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Prickly yellow is a canopy species, growing up to 100 feet. It has yellow wood and roots. Its scientific name "Zanthoxylum" comes from the Greek and means "yellow wood". Large prickles cover the trunk. The smooth bark is grayish brown outside and yellowish cream inside. The shiny dark green leaves are compound, paripinnate and alternately arranged along the branches. The tree produces aromatic creamy white flowers and small fruits. Like many deciduous trees, prickly yellow trees lose their leaves during the dry season to conserve water, which is necessary for the flowers. They are food trees for primates and birds. Prickly yellow occurs from South Mexico to South America. |
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The wood is pale yellow, moderately light, with a rough texture. It has been used for cabinet making and general carpentry, light construction, flooring and turnery. |
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| Santa Maria | ||
| Scientific name: Calophyllum brasiliense Family: Clusiaceae |
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Although able to reach 130 feet in height in the forest, Santa Maria tends to be a slow-growing, moderately-sized tree about 70 to 100 feet tall. The tree has a straight, cylindrical bole, sometimes with a moderate vertical torsion. The basal two thirds is branch free. The crown is round and dense, with ascending, thick, irregular branches. The bark is gray or brownish gray, coarse, thick, and vertically fissured with exfoliating small plates. Santa Maria is an evergreen tree densely foliated with attractive shiny and leathery leaves. The name "Calophyllum" comes from the Greek and means "beautiful leaves". The flowers are white in color and produce a pleasant scent. The fruits are globular berries, yellow-greenish or maroon at maturity. The natural range of the species extends from Mexico throughout Central America to tropical South America. It also grows in the West Indies. |
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Santa Maria is a moderately heavy wood. It has a typically interlocked grain, and a medium and quite uniform texture. It is often compared to mahogany, due to its similar qualities. It is a stable and durable wood. The heartwood varies in color from pink, yellowish pink, or pale red to brick-red or rich reddish brown. Fine dark veins are present. The timber is commonly used in internal and external construction, railroad foundations, shipbuilding, flooring and furniture making. |
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| Sapodilla | ||
| Scientific name: Manilkara zapota Family: Sapotaceae |
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The sapodilla is a long-lived, upright and elegant evergreen tree. It grows slowly but after many years, it can reach 60 to 100 feet in height. Due to their rounded crown and attractive glossy leaves, sapodillas are used as ornamentals. The bark contains a milky latex called "chicle". For many years it has been employed as the chief ingredient in chewing gums but it is now replaced by latex from other species and by synthetic gums. The sapodilla was the sacred tree of the Mayas who used to chew the dried latex. Today, it is cultivated for its fruit in most areas. The dark green leaves are elliptic or oblong, alternate and spirally clustered at the ends of shoots. The bell-shaped flowers are white or pale green, small and solitary. They appear in the leaf axils throughout the year. The fruit is a round to oval berry with a scurfy brown peel and a juicy, sweet, yellow-brown pulp. Sapodilla fruit is most commonly consumed fresh, when fully ripe, but also in jams, ice creams, juices and syrups. The sapodilla is native to Guatemala, Belize and the Yucatan peninsula in Mexico. It is now widespread throughout the tropical regions of the world, including Central and South America, the West Indies, India, and Florida. Sapodillas are well adapted to subtropical and tropical climates. They tolerate a wide range of soils but grow best in well-drained, light soils. |
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Sapodilla is a premium quality wood, known for its strength, durability and hardness.
The grain is straight or intercrossed, the texture is medium and uniform, without luster or figure. The heartwood is dark reddish brown in color while the sapwood is creamy pink or pale brown. The timber has a high resistance to insect and fungal attack. This makes it desirable for general construction of buildings, bridges, railway crossties and fence posts. The wood is also valued for furniture and cabinetwork, flooring, banisters and musical instruments. The Mayas already used it to make spear shafts, bowls and boxes. Timbers which formed lintels and supporting beams in Mayan temples have been found intact in the ruins. |
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| Spanish cedar | ||
| Scientific name: Cedrela mexicana Family: Meliaceae |
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Under favorable conditions, spanish cedar will reach heights over 100 feet and diameters 3 to 6 feet above the substantial buttresses. It has a straight cylindrical bole clear for 40 to 60 feet. The grayish bark is deeply grooved. Owing to its astringent properties, it is used against fever, malaria, abdominal pain and internal injuries. The tree produces large paripinnate leaves, 5 to 20 inches long, with 10 to 20 leaflets, generally glabrous. When crushed, they have a clear garlic-like smell. Spanish cedar bears small greenish-white flowers, in terminal or axillary panicles, often large and pendulous. The fruit is a brown woody capsule containing numerous winged seeds. Spanish cedar is grown as a shade or ornamental tree. The species is native to America, where it extends from Mexico to Argentina, occuring as well in the West Indies. It grows in humid or dry lowland forest, preferring well-drained soils. |
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Spanish cedar is a light and soft wood with very good resistance to decay and wood-boring insects. The color of the heartwood ranges from pinkish-brown to dark reddish-brown, sometimes with dark streaks. The sapwood is pale in color and is not sharply demarcated from the heartwood. The grain is usually straight, sometimes interlocked with an uneven texture. Natural oil in the wood gives off a distinctive fragrant scent. The wood is weather-resistant, durable and strong relative to its weight. Spanish cedar has been a timber of great commercial interest for over 200 years. It is an excellent choice for outside projects, such as outdoor furniture, boat building and general construction. It is the traditional wood used for making cigar boxes and it is also used for joinery, panelling, interior trims, decorative veneers, musical instruments and ornaments. |
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| Tamarind | ||
| Scientific name: Tamarindus indica Family: Leguminosae |
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The tamarind is a spectacular tropical tree, growing to a height of 30 to 65 feet high, with a massive trunk. Native of East Africa, it has been introduced into most of tropical Asia as well as Latin America. It is a slow-growing, long-lived tree that stays evergreen in regions without a dry season. The pale green, pinnate foliage is dense and feathery in appearance, making an attractive shade tree with an open branch structure. The delicate flowers are pale yellow with red-orange veins. The tree produces brown pod-like fruits, which contain pulp and many seeds. The pulp, both sweet and extremely sour, is extensively used in Indian and Southeast Asian cuisine to make chutneys, curries, sauces and beverages. The pulp, the leaves and the bark also have medical applications. The tamarind tree tolerates a great diversity of soil types, from deep alluvial soil to rocky land and porous limestone. |
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Tamarind timber consists of hard, dark purplish-brown heartwood and softer, yellowish sapwood. While hard to work, it is highly prized for furniture, flooring, panelling, knife and tool handles. It is also valued for fuel, especially for brick kilns, for it gives off an intense heat. |
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| Ziricote | ||
| Scientific name: Cordia dodecandra Family: Boraginaceae |
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Ziricote is one of the several species of the genus Cordia. It may attain a height of about 100 feet at maturity. This evergreen tree has simple pointed leaves and produces orange-red flowers growing in clusters and small yellow fruits. The flowers produce nectar and are pollinated by bees and other insects. The fruits are acidic but edible. A syrup made from the bark is used as cough medicine. The tree is native to Florida, Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil and West Indies. It is a lowland rainforest species. |
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Ziricote is a hard and heavy wood. It has the appearance of ebony, with an even more interesting wavy grain pattern. Its texture is medium to coarse. It is fairly dense, and oily enough to be water resistant and therefore stable. It varies in color from dark brown to almost black, with blackish ripples. Long used by natives for decorative craft objects, ziricote is also used in cabinet and furniture making. |
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| Various woods | ||
| Acapulco lysiloma | ||
| Scientific name: Lysiloma acapulcensis Family: Leguminosae |
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| Amaranth | ||
| Scientific name: Peltogyne purpurea Family: Fabaceae |
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| Black cabbage bark | ||
| Scientific name: Lonchocarpus castilloi Family: Leguminosae |
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| Marupa | ||
| Scientific name: Simarouba amara Family: Simaroubaceae |
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| Redwood | ||
| Scientific name: Simira salvadorensis Family: Rubiaceae |
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