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| Commercial timbers |
Nomenclature etc. FABACEAE-FABOIDEAE. Trade and local names: balche, chashté, kanazin, manchiche, matachiche (MX). Not protected under CITES regulations.
Description based on 6 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 (slight copper hue); without streaks. Sapwood colour distinct from heartwood colour (cream to yellowish). Odour indistinct or absent. Density 0.82–0.87–0.91 g/cm³.
Vessels. Wood diffuse porous. Vessels arranged in no specific pattern, in multiples, commonly in short (2–3 vessels) radial rows. Average tangential vessel diameter 85- 190–250 µm (-340). Average number of vessels/mm² 1- 3–5 (-9). Average vessel element length 200–240 µm. Perforation plates simple. Intervessel pits alternate, average diameter (vertical) 5–7 µm, pits vestured. Vessel-ray pits with distinct borders, similar to intervessel pits. Helical thickenings absent. Other deposits present (lighter and darker shades of amber).
Tracheids and fibres. Fibres of medium wall thickness. Fibre pits mainly restricted to radial walls, simple to minutely bordered. Fibres non-septate.
Axial parenchyma. Axial parenchyma banded. Bands marginal (or seemingly marginal) (fine lines) or not marginal (or seemingly marginal) (wide bands). Axial parenchyma bands much wider than rays. Bands fine or coarse. Axial parenchyma apotracheal, or paratracheal. Apotracheal axial parenchyma diffuse-in-aggregates. Paratracheal axial parenchyma aliform, or confluent. Aliform parenchyma of the lozenge type. Axial parenchyma as strands. Average number of cells per strand: 2–4. Short bands and parenchyma islands mostly not in contact with vessels.
Rays. Rays multiseriate, (2–)3(–4) cells wide. 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, all rays storied, axial parenchyma storied, vessel elements storied, fibres storied or not storied. Number of ray tiers per axial millimetre (3–)4.
Secretory structures. Intercellular canals absent.
Cambial variants. Included phloem absent.
Mineral inclusions. Crystals present, prismatic, located in axial parenchyma cells. Crystal-containing axial parenchyma cells chambered. Number of crystals per cell or chamber one, or more than one. Crystals in one cell or chamber of the same size, or of two distinct sizes. Silica not observed.
Physical and chemical tests. Heartwood fluorescent (yellow). Water extract not fluorescent; colour of water extract colourless to brown. Ethanol extract fluorescent (yellow). Colour of ethanol extract colourless to brown. Froth test negative. Splinter burns to full ash. Ash bright white.
Illustrations. • Macroscopic images. transverse (ca. 10x). radial (naturals size). • Transverse section. • Transverse section enlarged. • Tangential section. • Radial section.
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’.
