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Swietenia macrophylla

Authority King Family Magnoliopsida:Rosidae:Sapindales:Meliaceae Synonyms Swietenia candollei Pittier, Swietenia krukovii Gleason, Swietenia tessmannii Common names American mahogany, big-leafed mahogany, broad-leaved mahogany, echtes Mahagoni, Mahagoni, mahogany, true mahogany Editor Ecocrop code 2022

Notes
BRIEF DESCRIPTION A large deciduous but nearly evergreen tree, usually 30-40 m high with a girth of 3-4 m, but the tree can reach 60 m and a girth of 9 m. The bole is straight and cylindrical and up to 1/2 to 2/3 of the tree height, often with high buttresses. USES The timber has a reddish tint and a high quality, it is used for carpentry, veneers, plywood, cabinet making, light construction and boat building. It is used as shade for cacao and coffee. An oil can be extracted from the seed kernels and the bark is used for dying and tanning leather. It has various medicinal properties. Mentioned as a possible agroforestry species. GROWING PERIOD Perennial. In India, the leaves appear in March, flowers appear in April-May, and the fruit ripen nearly a year later, in February-March. Leaves fall in February-March. On good sites and under intensive management the tree may reach a merchantable size at 30-50 years of age. It withstands a dry season of up to 7 months. COMMON NAMES Large-leaved mahogany, Big-leaved mahogany, Broad-leaved mahogany, Mahogany, Acajou, Caoba, Bastard mahogany, Honduras mahogany, Bara mahauni. FURTHER INF Large-leaved mahogany is native of the region from Central America to northern Peru and Brazil, and to the Antilles. In its native range it can be found at elevations from sea level to 1500 m, but it is best adapted to elevations below 600 m. The latitudinal range of natural occurrence is 23°N-18°S. Seedlings require shading to become established, and the tree can be used for erosion control as an undercrop for teak. It can adapt to a wide range of soil conditions and it is windfirm. Annual wood production potential is 7-18 m3/ha.
Sources
SOURCES (S. macrophylla King) Webb D 1984 pp 245 [RAIN, TEMP, TEXT, PH, DRA, LIG, USE] Roecklein J 1987 pp 437 [USE, RAIN, TEMP, TEXT, LIG] Joshi H 1980a pp 181-185 [TEMP, RAIN, DEP, DRA, TEXT, USE, PH, LIG, KTMP] INSPIRE species 162 [RAIN, TEMP, TEXT, PH, DRA, LIG, USE] Hensleigh T 1988 pp 305-309 [TEXT, DRA, DEP, TEMP, RAIN, LIG, USE] Zabala N 1990 pp 135-138 [TEMP, RAIN, TEXT, FER, DRA, LIG, USE] Chaplin G 1993 pp 161-174 [DRA, TEXT, RAIN, TEMP, USE] Soerianegara I 1993 pp 442-447 [USE, RAIN, TEMP, TEXT, DEP, DRA, FER, PH]