Myroxylon balsamum

Balsamo

Family: Leguminosae

Other Common Names: Balsamo, Palo de balsamo (Spanish America generally), Cedro chino, Nabal (Mexico), Chirraca, Sandalo (Costa Rica), Tache, Tolu (Colombia), Estoraque (Peru), Cabriuva vermelha (Brazil), Incienso, Quina (Argentina).

Distribution: Has a wide range from southern Mexico southward through Central American and continuing to Argentina.

The Tree: Up to 100 ft in height, usually 50 to 65 ft and 18 to 36 in. in diameter.

The Wood:

General Characteristics: Heartwood reddish brown becoming deep red or somewhat purplish upon exposure; fairly uniform to striped; sharply demarcated from the white sapwood. Luster medium to high; texture medium; grain is typically interlocked; without distinctive taste, but may have a pleasant spicy scent.

Weight: Basic specific gravity (ovendry weight/green volume) 0.74 to 0.81; air- dry density 54 to 62 pcf.

Mechanical Properties: (First set of data based on the 2-cm standard; the second and third on the 2-in. standard.)

Moisture content Bending strength Modulus of elasticity Maximum crushing strength

(%) (Psi) (1,000 psi) (Psi)

Green (30) 16,900 1,820 8,600

15% 19,200 NA 10,300

12% (20) 25,400 NA 13,400

Green (40) 17,270 2,130 8,200

12% 20,130 2,430 11,100

Janka side hardness 2,070 lb for green material and 2,200 lb at 12% moisture content. Amsler toughness 360 in.-lb at 15% moisture content (2-cm specimen).

Drying and Shrinkage: No information available on seasoning characteristics. Shrinkage from green to ovendry: radial 3.8%; tangential 6.2%; volumetric 10.0%. These values are very low for a wood of this high density.

Working Properties: It is reported to be moderately difficult to work but can be finished smoothly with a high natural polish. Though non-siliceous, there is more than the usual dulling of cutters.

Durability: The heartwood is reported to be highly resistant to attack by decay fungi.

Preservation: Both sapwood and heartwood are highly resistant to preservative treatments.

Uses: Flooring, furniture, interior trim, turnery, railroad crossties. The tree is well known for its yield of balsam used in perfumes, harvested mainly in El Salvador.

Additional Reading: (20), (30), (40), (56)

M 150 282-3Logs are delivered to a sawmill in southern Nigeria. African mahogany

(mostly Khaya ivorensis) is in high demand on overseas markets. Export of logs fro

this region, as well as from most other tropical areas, is being restricted.

M 150 282-2Band mills in Ghana are designed to handle logs 5 feet and more in

diameter. Obeche or Wawa (Triplochiton scleroxylon) logs yield lumber favored for

joinery and millwork.

M 150 273-14In many areas of the tropics, fast-growing species are being introduced

future supplies of fuel wood and industrial wood. Batai (Albizia falcataria) is

a favored plantation species in the Philipines.

M 150 273-13 Shores spp. is still the major timber group harvested in Southeast

Asia. With modern chain saws, fellers no longer need scaffolding to get above larg

buttresses.

M 150 281 Felling of white lauan or almon (Shorea a;mon) with axes in the early

1900s in the Philippines. Most hardwood plywood now imported into the USA is

produced from species of Shorea.

[M 150 273-9Plywood mill in San Jose, Costa Rica, produces rotary-cut veneers mostly from banak (Virola spp.) and crabwood or cedro macho (Carapa guianensis). Logs trucked in from the Caribbean coast.]

M 150 273-21Mahot or Tauary (Couratari spp.) grows from Panama south to the Brazilian Amazon. Trunk diameters may exceed 4 feet above the stout buttresses. In tropical American moist forests, single species usually make up less than 5 percent of the stand volume.

M 150 273-18Trees in the tropics yield not only wood but a wide array of gums, oil

resins, tannins, edible fruits, medicinals, latex, fodder, and much more. The para

rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis) at the end of its tapping life is used to produce

attractive wood suitable for furniture components.