Cordia alliodora (Ruiz & Pavon) Oken (Canalete, laurel blanco, louro)
Nomenclature etc. BORAGINACEAE. Trade and local names: laurel blanco, pardillo. Status of protection under CITES regulations: not protected.
Description based on: 6 specimens échantillons. Tree. Geographic distribution: Caribbean, or Mexico and Central America to tropical South America.
General. Heartwood basically brown to yellow (pale yellowish brown), often with streaks. Sapwood colour similar to heartwood colour, or distinct from heartwood colour (sapwood slightly paler than the heartwood). Basic specific gravity 0.42–0.58 g/cm³.
Vessels. Wood diffuse-porous. Vessels arranged in no specific pattern, in multiples, commonly short (2–3 vessels) radial rows or in clusters. Average tangential vessel diameter 73–178 µm. Average number of vessels/mm² 10–33. Average vessel element length 230–388 µm. Perforation plates simple. Intervessel pits alternate, average diameter (vertical) 5–6 µm. Vessel-ray pits with distinct borders, similar to intervessel pits. Helical thickenings absent. Tyloses in vessels present.
Tracheids and fibres. Fibres of medium wall thickness. Average fibre length 1128–1827 µm. Fibre pits mainly restricted to radial walls, simple to minutely bordered. Fibres non-septate.
Axial parenchyma. Axial parenchyma banded or not banded. Axial parenchyma bands marginal (or seemingly marginal), fine, up to three cells wide. Axial parenchyma paratracheal. Paratracheal axial parenchyma scanty, or vasicentric to aliform. Aliform parenchyma lozenge. Axial parenchyma as strands. Average number of cells per axial parenchyma strand 2–4.
Rays. Rays 3–5 per tangential mm, multiseriate, also if only few, 3–4 cells wide. Rays composed of two or more cell types. Heterocellular rays square and upright cells restricted to marginal rows. Number of marginal rows of upright or square cells 1. Sheath cells present.
Storied structures. Storied structure absent.
Secretory structures. Intercellular canals absent.
Mineral inclusions. Crystals present or not observed, prismatic, located in ray cells. Crystal-containing ray cells upright and/or square or procumbent. Crystals in procumbent ray cells not in radial alignment. Number of crystals per cell or chamber one. Cystoliths absent. Silica not observed.
Physical and chemical tests. Heartwood not fluorescent. Water extract fluorescent (light greenish blue). Water extract basically yellow or shade of yellow. Ethanol extract fluorescent (light green blue). Ethanol extract basically yellow or shade of yellow.
Cite this publication as: H. G. Richter and M. J. Dallwitz (2000 onwards). 'Commercial timbers: descriptions, illustrations, identification, and information retrieval.' In English, French, German, and Spanish. Version: 4th May 2000. http://biodiversity.uno.edu/delta/.
Dallwitz (1980) and Dallwitz, Paine and Zurcher (1993 onwards, 1995 onwards, 1998) should also be cited (see General references).