GHI

Distribution: Throughout most of North America, with commercial species in the eastern United States and Canada and the western coast of the United States (bigleaf maple).

General Characteristics: Maple lumber comes principally from the Middle Atlantic and Lake States, which together account for about two-thirds of the production. The wood of sugar maple and black maple is known as hard maple. The sapwood of the maples is commonly white with a slight reddish-brown tinge; the heartwood is light reddish brown, but sometimes is considerably darker. The sapwood is from 3 to 5+ inches (76 to 127+ mm) thick. Hard maple has a fine, uniform texture, turns well on a lathe, is resistant to abrasion and has no characteristic odor or taste. It is heavy, strong, stiff, hard, and resistant to shock, and it has large shrinkage. Sugar maple is generally straight grained but the grain also occurs as “birds-eye,” “curly,” and “fiddleback” grain. Maple lumber sometimes has olive or greenish black discolored areas known as mineral streak or mineral stain, which may be due to injury. Maple wood stains well and takes a high polish. It is intermediate in gluing and has low decay resistance.

Working Properties: The wood turns well, is harder to work than softer woods, and has high nail-holding ability. It stains and polishes well, but is intermediate in gluing.

Durability: Rated as slightly or nonresistant to heartwood decay.

Uses: Lumber, distillation, veneer, crossties, paper pulp, flooring, furniture, pallets, boxes and crates, shoe lasts, handles, woodenware, novelties, spools and bobbins, bowling alleys, dance floors, piano frames, bowling pins, cutting blocks, pulpwood and turnery.

Distribution:  Southern Mexico southward to Colombia, Venezuela, and parts of the upper Amazon and its tributaries in Peru, Bolivia, and Brazil. Plantations have been established within its natural range and elsewhere.

General Characteristics: Heartwood reddish, pinkish, salmon colored, or yellowish when fresh; deepening with age to deep rich red or brown; distinct from the yellowish or whitish sapwood. Luster high and golden; texture rather fine to coarse; grain straight to roey, wavy, or curly, often with an attractive figure; odor and taste not distinctive.

Working Properties: Very easy to work with hand and machine tools, torn and chipped grain is common with figured material. Easy to finish and takes an excellent polish.  Slices and rotary cuts into fine veneer.

Durability: Generally heartwood rates as durable in resistance to a brown-rot and a white-rot fungus. Moderately resistant to dry-wood termites and little resistance attack by marine borers.

Uses: Fine furniture and cabinet making, interior trim, paneling, fancy veneers, musical instruments, boat building, pattern making, turnery, and carving.

Distribution:  Reported only in Belize (British Honduras) occurring in fairly large patches along rivers but also on inter-riverine and drier areas; mostly between Sarstoon and Monkey Rivers

General Characteristics: Heartwood is pinkish brown to purple with alternating dark and light zones forming a very attractive figure, distinct from 1- to 2-in.- thick yellow sapwood. Texture medium to rather fine; grain generally straight to slightly roey; luster low to medium; fresh wood has an aromatic odor which dissipates with age, taste not distinctive to slightly bitter.

Working Properties: Moderately difficult to saw and machine due to its hardness, dulls cutting edges; tends to ride over cutters. Excellent for turning and finishes well if not too oily.

Durability: Heartwood is highly durable, reported to be moderately resistant to termites.

Uses: Parts of musical instruments including percussion bars of xylophones, veneers for fine furniture and cabinets, brush backs, knife handles, fine turnery, many specialty items.

Distribution:   Throughout continental tropical America and some of the Lesser Antilles. The tree grows on a variety of sites, from ridge tops to riverbanks and marsh forests.

General Characteristics: Heartwood olive brown to blackish, often with lighter or darker striping, often covered with a yellow powder; sharply demarcated from the whitish or yellowish sapwood. Texture fine to medium; luster low to medium; grain straight to very irregular; rather oily looking; without distinctive odor or taste.

Working Properties: Moderately difficult to work especially with hand tools; has a blunting effect on cutting edges, finishes smoothly except where grain is very roey The fine yellow dust produced in most operations may cause dermatitis in some workers.

Durability: Heartwood is very resistant to attack by decay fungi and termites; not resistant to marine borers. T. guayacan however, is reported to have good resistance in Panama waters.

Uses: Railroad crossties, heavy construction, tool handles, turnery, industrial flooring, textile mill items, decorative veneers.

Distribution:  The two species, between them, extend across the entire width of tropical Africa. C. regia is limited to the extreme west of Africa from Gambia to Ghana and is less drought resistant.

General Characteristics:  Heartwood varies from a pale yellowish brown to dark chocolate brown with lighter markings most conspicuous on flat-sawn surfaces; sapwood yellowish white, clearly demarcated. Texture medium to coarse; grain typically interlocked, sometimes irregular; slightly greasy feel; without odor; wet sawdust may cause dermatitis; occasional large "stone" deposits of calcium carbonate.

Working Properties: Works fairly easily with hand or machine tools but with some tearing of interlocked grain; occasional deposits of calcium carbonate severely damage cutting edges; good nailing and gluing characteristics; moderate steam-bending properties; may cause dermatitis in working wet wood.

Durability:  Heartwood is very durable and is resistant to termite and marine borer attack as well. Sapwood liable to powder-post beetle attack.

Uses:  Suggested as a teak substitute. Joinery, boat building, piling and marine work, domestic flooring, furniture, veneer, railroad crossties, cabinetwork, shop fittings.

JKL

Distribution:  Southern Mexico, throughout Central America and the West Indies to northern Brazil, Bolivia, and Peru. The tree's best development is on ridges or slopes and high riverbanks.

General Characteristics: Heartwood is salmon red to orange brown when fresh, becoming russet to reddish brown when seasoned; often marked with dark streaks. Sapwood is usually wide; white, gray, or pinkish. Texture is medium to rather coarse; grain mostly interlocked; golden luster; without distinctive odor or taste.

Working Properties: Jatoba is moderately difficult to saw and machine largely because of its high density, but except in planing it can be machined to a smooth surface.  The wood is somewhat difficult to plane because of the interlocked grain. It is easy to glue and finish satisfactorily; steam-bending properties comparable to white oak.

Durability: Laboratory evaluations rate Jatoba very resistant to brown-rot and white-rot fungi; actual field exposure trials also rate the wood as very durable. Heartwood is also rated very resistant to dry-wood termites; little resistance to marine borers.

Uses: Tool handles and other applications where good shock resistance is needed, steam-bent parts, flooring, turnery, furniture and cabinet work, railroad crossties tree-nails, gear cogs, wheel rims, and other specialty items. Tree exudes a rosin-like gum known commercially as South American copal. Seed pods contain an edible pulp.

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