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Nomenclature etc. MELIACEAE. Syn.: Chickrassia tabularis, Chukrasia velutina. Trade and local names: chickrassy, chittagong wood, Burma almondwood (trade); bastard cedar, white cedar, East Indian mahogany (GB); cherana puteh, repoh, suntang puteh (MY); yinma, tawyinma, (MM); voryong (KH); nhom, nhom hin, nhom khao (TH). Not protected under CITES regulations.
Tree. Geographic distribution: India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Indomalesia.
General. Growth ring boundaries distinct (demarcated by marginal parenchyma bands). Heartwood basically brown; without streaks. Sapwood colour distinct from heartwood colour. Density 0.6–0.8 g/cm³. With interlocked grain.
Vessels. Wood diffuse porous. Vessels arranged in no specific pattern, in multiples, commonly in short (2–3 vessels) radial rows or in radial rows of 4 or more. Average tangential vessel diameter 130–160 µm. Average number of vessels/mm² 13–16. Perforation plates simple. Intervessel pits alternate, average diameter (vertical) 3–4 µm. Vessel-ray pits with distinct borders, similar to intervessel pits. Tyloses absent. Other deposits present (amber and dark brown to black).
Tracheids and fibres. Fibres of medium wall thickness. Average fibre length 800–1500 µm. 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 or coarse. Axial parenchyma apotracheal, or paratracheal. Apotracheal axial parenchyma diffuse-in-aggregates. Paratracheal axial parenchyma scanty to vasicentric. Axial parenchyma as strands. Average number of cells per strand: 7–11.
Rays. Rays 5–8 per tangential mm, multiseriate, (1–)2–5 cells wide. Height of large rays up to 500 µm, or commonly 500 to 1000 µm. Rays composed of two or more cell types (heterocellular). Heterocellular rays with square and upright cells restricted to marginal rows, mostly 1 marginal row of upright or square cells or mostly 2–4 marginal rows of upright or square cells. Tile cells absent.
Storied structures. Storied structure absent.
Secretory structures. Intercellular canals occasionally present, traumatic origin, oriented axially, axial intercellular canals in short tangential lines.
Cambial variants. Included phloem absent.
Mineral inclusions. Crystals present, prismatic, located in ray cells or axial parenchyma cells. Crystal-containing ray cells upright and/or square, upright and/or square ray cells chambered or not chambered. Crystal-containing axial parenchyma cells chambered. Number of crystals per cell or chamber one. Silica not observed.
Physical and chemical tests. Heartwood extractives not leachable by water. Froth test negative.
Illustrations. • Transverse section. • Tangential section. ray width can vary widely between specimens. • Radial section. • Intervessel pits; crystals. minute intervascular pitting (left); crystalliferous parenchyma strands (right).
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’.
