Enterolobium contortisiliquum (Vell.) Morong & Britton (Timbó)
Nomenclature etc. LEGUM.-MIMOSACEAE. Syn.: Enterolobium timbouva Mart. Trade and local names: timbo (PY); timbó, timbó colorado, pará, cambá-cambí, timbó-pyita, t. colorado, t. cedro, oreja de negro, pacará (RA); toco, oreja de abuela (BO); tamboril, timbuva, orelha de negro (BR); timbó (PY). Status of protection under CITES regulations: not protected.
Description based on: 10 specimens. Tree. Geographic distribution: tropical South America, southern Brazil, and temperate South America.
General. Growth ring boundaries indistinct or absent. Heartwood basically brown red, with streaks. Sapwood colour distinct from heartwood colour. Odour indistinct or absent. Basic specific gravity 0.43 g/cm³.
Vessels. Vessels present. Wood diffuse-porous. Vessels arranged in no specific pattern, in multiples, commonly short (2–3 vessels) radial rows and in clusters. Vessel outline rounded. Two distinct vessel diameter classes absent. Average tangential vessel diameter 90–200–380 µm. Average tangential diameter of vessel lumina large. Average number of vessels/mm² 2–5. Vessels per square millimetre very few. Perforation plates simple. Intervessel pits alternate, average diameter (vertical) 9–11 µm, medium, vestured. Vessel-ray pits with distinct borders, similar to intervessel pits, of uniform size or type, of the same type in adjacent elements, located throughout the ray. Helical thickenings absent. Tyloses in vessels absent. Other deposits in heartwood vessels present, organic contents of light brown colour.
Tracheids and fibres. Vascular or vasicentric tracheids sporadic to absent. Fibres very thin-walled and of medium wall thickness. Average fibre length 800–900 µm. Average fibre length short. Fibre pits mainly restricted to radial walls, simple to minutely bordered. Helical thickenings absent. Fibres non-septate.
Axial parenchyma. Axial parenchyma present, not banded. Axial parenchyma paratracheal. Paratracheal axial parenchyma vasicentric and confluent. Axial parenchyma as strands. Average number of cells per axial parenchyma strand 2–4. Unlignified parenchyma absent.
Rays. Rays present, 2–4 per tangential mm, multiseriate, also if only few, (1–)2–4(–5) cells wide, 2–3 cells wide and commonly 3–5 cells wide. Rays with multiseriate portions as wide as uniseriate portions absent. Aggregate rays absent. Rays of one size. Height of large rays up to 500 µm. Rays composed of a single cell type. Homocellular ray cells procumbent. Sheath cells absent. Tile cells absent. Perforated ray cells absent. Disjunctive ray parenchyma end walls indistinct or absent.
Storied structures. Storied structure absent.
Secretory structures. Oil and mucilage cells absent. Intercellular canals absent. Laticifers or tanniniferous tubes absent.
Cambial variants. Included phloem absent. Other cambial variants absent.
Mineral inclusions. Crystals present, prismatic, located in ray cells and axial parenchyma cells. Crystal-containing ray cells procumbent. Crystals in procumbent ray cells not in radial alignment. Crystal-containing axial parenchyma cells chambered. Number of crystals per cell or chamber one. Crystal containing cells of normal size. Cystoliths absent. Silica not observed.
Physical and chemical tests. Heartwood fluorescent. Water extract not fluorescent. Water extract basically colourless to brown or shade of brown. Heartwood extractives not leachable by water. Ethanol extract fluorescent. Ethanol extract basically colourless to brown or shade of brown. Chrome azurol-S test negative. Froth test positive. Splinter burns to full ash. Ash other than white, grey, yellow or brown.
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).