| DESCRIPTION: Evergreen palm up to 35 m tall and 1 m in diameter, normally 6-12 m tall. Leaves 5-10 cm long; leaflets 2-4 pairs, opposite or semi-alternate, petiolulate, elliptic ovoid, 2-6 cm long, 1.2-2.5 cm broad with finely pinnate reticulate nervation. Flowers in terminal racemes to compound panicles with numerous, sub-sessile whitish flowers. Sepals 4 - lanceolate, concave, firm, glabrous outside, pubescent inside. Petals absent. Stamens free, (8-10), the anthers elliptic, versatile. Ovary hirsute; briefly stipitate; fruit ovoid, compressed, ca 2 x 3 cm, coriaceous, with one large seed partially covered with a thick aril. USES: The oleoresin called Œcopaiba‚ can be obtained by drilling a 5cm deep hole into the trunk, which is then closed with a bung. Every 6 months or so, the bung is removed and 15 to 20 litres of a hydrocarbon collected. The wood of the tree is honeycombed with a network of connected cavities in which the oleoresin forms. To tap the tree, a drainage reservoir is hollowed out near its base by cutting inward and downward into the centre of the trunk. The cavities containing the oleoresin gradually drain into these hollowed-out wells. This process is repeated several times during the season. When first obtained, copaiba is thin and clear but on aging becomes thicker and acquires a yellowish tinge. This liquid can be used as a diesel substitute and is used in lacquers, massage preparations, medicines, and paints. Wood and resin can be used for fuel. The wood is used in carpentry. FURTHER INF.: It occurs from subtropical dry to wet through tropical dry to wet forest life zones. Copaiba probably tolerates annual precipitation of 1000 to 4000 mm, annual temperature of 20 to 27°C (with no frost), and pH of 4.5 to 7.5. Early USDA publications suggest that most copaiba comes from regions with annual precipitation of 3500 mm or more and annual temperature ca. 27°C. |