| | Commercial timbers |
Nomenclature etc. FABACEAE-FABOIDEAE. Trade and local names: chulul, grenadillo, subin‘ché, hormiguillo (MX); cristóbal (CR); tlacuilo (PA). Not protected under CITES regulations.
Description based on 5 specimens. Tree. Geographic distribution: Mexico and Central America.
General. Growth ring boundaries distinct (demarcated by very narrow marginal parenchyma bands). Heartwood basically brown, red, purple; with streaks. Sapwood colour distinct from heartwood colour (cream to yellowish). Odour distinct. Density 0.95–0.98–1.02 g/cm³.
Vessels. Wood diffuse porous. Vessels in multiples, commonly in short (2–3 vessels) radial rows. Average tangential vessel diameter 80- 150–160 µm (-210). Average number of vessels/mm² 4- 7–10 (-13). Average vessel element length 160–280 µm. Perforation plates simple. Intervessel pits alternate, average diameter (vertical) 6–8 µm, pits vestured. Vessel-ray pits with distinct borders, similar to intervessel pits. Other deposits present (honey and amber colored to brownish orange).
Tracheids and fibres. Fibres very thick-walled. Fibre pits mainly restricted to radial walls, simple to minutely bordered. Fibres non-septate.
Axial parenchyma. Axial parenchyma banded. Bands marginal (or seemingly marginal). Bands fine. Axial parenchyma apotracheal (isolated crystal bearing parenchyma strands), or paratracheal. Apotracheal axial parenchyma diffuse. Paratracheal axial parenchyma aliform. Aliform parenchyma of the lozenge type. Axial parenchyma fusiform (in specimens with storied structure), or as strands. Average number of cells per strand: 2–4.
Rays. Rays exclusively uniseriate or multiseriate, 1–2 cells wide, narrow (2–3 seriate). Height of large rays up to 500 µm. Rays composed of a single cell type (homocellular); homocellular ray cells procumbent.
Storied structures. Storied structure present or absent, all rays storied (depending on the specimen the storied structure is more or less evident), axial parenchyma storied or not storied, vessel elements storied, fibres storied or not storied. Arrangement of tiers regular, or irregular. Number of ray tiers per axial millimetre 4–5.
Secretory structures. Intercellular canals absent.
Mineral inclusions. Crystals present, prismatic, located in ray cells (very rarely) or axial parenchyma cells. Crystal-containing ray cells procumbent. Crystal-containing axial parenchyma cells chambered (primarily in outer cells of banded and aliform parenchyma). Number of crystals per cell or chamber one. Silica not observed.
Physical and chemical tests. Heartwood not fluorescent. Water extract fluorescent (bright light blue); colour of water extract colourless to brown. Ethanol extract fluorescent (bright bluish violet). Colour of ethanol extract colourless to brown, or red. Froth test positive. Splinter burns to full ash. Ash white to grey.
Illustrations. • Macroscopic images. transverse (ca. 10x). radial (natural size). • Transverse section. • Transverse section enlarged. • Tangential section. • Radial section. • Crystals. rare prismatic crystals in both chambered and non-chambered ray cells.
The interactive key allows access to the character list, illustrations, full and partial descriptions, diagnostic descriptions, differences and similarities between taxa, lists of taxa exhibiting specified attributes, summaries of attributes within groups of taxa, and geographical distribution.
Cite this publication as: ‘Richter, H.G., and Dallwitz, M.J. 2000 onwards. Commercial timbers: descriptions, illustrations, identification, and information retrieval. In English, French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish. Version: 9th April 2019. delta-intkey.com’.
