''Myroxylon balsamum'', Santos mahogany, is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only ...

in the family

Fabaceae Fabaceae () or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomen ...

. It is native to

tropical forest Tropical forests are forested ecoregions with tropical climates – that is, land areas approximately bounded by the Tropic of Cancer, tropics of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn, Capricorn, but possibly affected by other factors such as prevailing ...

s from Southern

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

through the Amazon regions of

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

and

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

at elevations of . Plants are found growing in well drained soil in evergreen humid forest.

Varieties

According to the

Germplasm Resources Information Network Germplasm Resources Information Network or GRIN is an online USDA National Genetic Resources Program software project to comprehensively manage the computer database for the holdings of all plant germplasm collected by the National Plant Germpla ...

, there are two varieties: *''Myroxylon balsamum'' var. ''balsamum'' – Tolu balsam tree *''Myroxylon balsamum'' var. ''pereirae'' (Royle) Harms – Peru balsam tree

Description

The tree is large and slow growing, reaching in height. Crown is round with dense foliage and the bark is yellowish with a pungent odor. Leaves alternate, petiolate, including the petioles, the petioles long, and the rachis long. The rachis and petioles are pubescent and terete. Leaflets are acute to acuminate at the apex, obtuse at the base, glabrous, with an entire margin and glandular oil dots. Plants bloom 5 years from seeds during the months of February to June. Flowers are white, pubescent and has around 10 stamens. The fruit is a flat winged pod, narrowly obovate long wide, yellow to brown when dried and drop around November to January. File:Myroxylon balsamum 0zz.jpg, Trunk File:Myroxylon balsamum 1zz.jpg, Limbs File:Myroxylum balsamum 1zz.jpg, Leaves File:Myroxylum balsamum 2zz.jpg, Leaves

Uses

Balsam of Tolu and

Balsam of Peru Balsam is the resinous exudate (or sap) which forms on certain kinds of trees and shrubs. Balsam (from Latin ''balsamum'' "gum of the balsam tree," ultimately from a Semitic source such as ) owes its name to the biblical Balm of Gilead. Chem ...

are the products of the species' resin. They are extracted from different varieties in different ways. They are marketed among a series of intermediaries and exporters, their destinations being Germany, the United States of America, England and Spain, where they are used in the manufacture of cosmetics and medicines (for diseases of the skin, bronchi, lungs and airways, and in the treatment of burns and wounds).. The tree has been planted for Balsam production in West Africa,

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, and

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

. The wood is reddish and has interlocked grain, which gives it a strong ribbon-like pattern, and logs produce a large amount of knot-free lumber. The wood has a

Janka hardness Janka is a given name or a surname. The name is a form of the originally Hebrew name ''Yohanan'' (meaning "God is merciful"). Notable people with the name include: Surname * Carlo Janka (born 1986), Swiss alpine ski racer * Erika Jänkä (b ...

of and is somewhat resistant to fungal decay. ''Myroxylon balsamum'' wood is used for flooring, furniture, interior trim, and heavy construction. ''M. balsamum'' is often used as a shade tree in coffee plantations.

References

External links

* * {{Taxonbar, from=Q15290525 Amburaneae Flora of Central America Trees of Brazil Trees of Northern America Trees of Peru