Willow beechwood | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Order: | Proteales |
Family: | Proteaceae |
Genus: | Faurea |
Species: | F. saligna |
Binomial name | |
Faurea saligna | |
Synonyms [2] | |
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Faurea saligna is a graceful, semi-deciduous tree in the family Proteaceae . [2] [3] It grows to about 10 metres, or up to 20 metres under forest conditions. Found from tropical Africa south to the Transvaal, Swaziland and Natal, often in large communities on sandy soil and along stream beds.
Its dark-grey to black bark is rough and deeply fissured, while the narrow drooping leaves are reminiscent of a willow (saligna meaning Salix-like). The timber was much-prized by the Voortrekkers for furniture and they named it Transvaal Boekenhout for the timber's resemblance to that of the European Beech. There are some 15 species of Faurea occurring in Africa and Madagascar. [4]
William Henry Harvey named the genus after William Caldwell Faure (1822-1844), a young soldier and enthusiastic botanist who was killed in India, and was the son of Cape Town Dutch Reformed minister Abraham Faure. Faure had accompanied Harvey on numerous botanising excursions, and had left the Cape for India in 1844 having received a commission in the East India Company's military service. He contracted cholera on arriving and was fortunate to recover. A few months later and in the company of a few fellow soldiers, he was shot by a sniper while crossing a ravine in a patch of forest, on the way to rejoining his regiment. He died after some twelve hours. [5]
Curtisia dentata is a flowering tree from Southern Africa. It is the sole species in genus Curtisia, which was originally classed as a type of "dogwood" (Cornaceae), but is now placed in its own unique family Curtisiaceae.
Acacia saligna, commonly known by various names including coojong, golden wreath wattle, orange wattle, blue-leafed wattle, Western Australian golden wattle, and, in Africa, Port Jackson willow, is a small tree in the family Fabaceae. Native to Australia, it is widely distributed throughout the south west corner of Western Australia, extending north as far as the Murchison River, and east to Israelite Bay. The Noongar peoples know the tree as Cujong.
Olea capensis, the black ironwood, is an African tree species in the olive family Oleaceae. It is widespread in sub-Saharan Africa: from the east in Somalia, Ethiopia and Sudan, south to the tip of South Africa, and west to Cameroon, Sierra Leone and the islands of the Gulf of Guinea, as well as Madagascar and the Comoros. It occurs in bush, littoral scrub and evergreen forest.
Leucadendron argenteum is an endangered plant species in the family Proteaceae, which is endemic to a small area of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa. Most grow in and around the city of Cape Town, but outlying populations exist near Somerset West (Silwerboomkloof), Paarl and Stellenbosch. It is a protected tree in South Africa.
William Henry Harvey, FRS FLS was an Irish botanist and phycologist who specialised in algae.
Eucalyptus saligna, commonly known as the Sydney blue gum or blue gum, is a species of medium-sized to tall tree that is endemic to eastern Australia. It has rough, flaky bark near the base of the trunk, smooth bark above, lance-shaped to curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, nine or eleven, white flowers and cylindrical to conical or cup-shaped fruit.
Eucalyptus grandis, commonly known as the flooded gum or rose gum, is a tall tree with smooth bark, rough at the base fibrous or flaky, grey to grey-brown. At maturity, it reaches 50 metres tall, though the largest specimens can exceed 80 metres tall. It is found on coastal areas and sub-coastal ranges from Newcastle in New South Wales northwards to west of Daintree in Queensland, mainly on flat land and lower slopes, where it is the dominant tree of wet forests and on the margins of rainforests.
Pachypodium namaquanum, also known as halfmens or elephants trunk, is a Southern African succulent plant in the family Apocynaceae. The genus name Pachypodium is from the Greek for 'thick foot', an allusion to its swollen base, while the species name namaquanum is a reference to Namaqualand.
Anchieta's sunbird is a species of bird in the family Nectariniidae. It is found in Angola, the DRC, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, and Zambia, and is named after José Alberto de Oliveira Anchieta.
Aloe comosa is a species of flowering plant in the Asphodelaceae family. It is commonly called Clanwilliam aloe) and is endemic to South Africa.
Faurea is a genus containing 16 species of flowering plants in the protea family which occur in the summer rainfall area of southern Africa, extending to tropical Africa and Madagascar. The name honours South African soldier and botanist William Caldwell Faure (1822-1844) who was killed on active service in India.
Sterculia alexandri is a species of flowering plant in the family Malvaceae. It is endemic to South Africa, occurring in the Eastern Cape, and only found in a few localities: the Winterhoek Mountains near Uitenhage, Van Staaden's Mountains near Port Elizabeth and the Kouga Dam at the start of the Baviaanskloof. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Tetrameles is a genus of flowering plants in the family Tetramelaceae with one species, Tetrameles nudiflora. It grows as a large deciduous tree and is found across southern Asia from India through southeast Asia, Malesia, and into northern Australia.
Antiaris toxicaria is a tree in the mulberry and fig family, Moraceae. It is the only species currently recognized in the genus Antiaris. The genus Antiaris was at one time considered to consist of several species, but is now regarded as just one variable species which can be further divided into five subspecies. One significant difference within the species is that the size of the fruit decreases as one travels from Africa to Polynesia. Antiaris has a remarkably wide distribution in tropical regions, occurring in Australia, tropical Asia, tropical Africa, Indonesia, the Philippines, Tonga, and various other tropical islands. Its seeds are spread by various birds and bats, and it is not clear how many of the populations are essentially invasive. The species is of interest as a source of wood, bark cloth, and pharmacological or toxic substances.
Quercus pyrenaica, also known as Pyrenean oak, or Spanish oak is a tree native to southwestern Europe and northwestern North Africa. Despite its common name, it is rarely found in the Pyrenees Mountains and is more abundant in northern Portugal and north and northwestern Spain.
Maerua afra (DC.) Pax is a small Southern African tree belonging to Capparaceae, the caper family, occurring eastwards along the coast from Knysna, then further inland and northwards through KwaZulu-Natal and Eswatini to the Transvaal, southern Mozambique and southern Zimbabwe. The genus Maerua comprises about 60 species found in Africa and Asia.
Xanthorrhoea drummondii, commonly known as grasstree or Drummond's balga, is a species of grasstree of the family Asphodelaceae. It is native to Western Australia.
Drypetes gerrardii is a species of small tree or large shrub in the family Putranjivaceae. Common names include forest ironplum, bastard white ironwood, and forest ironwood. It is native to tropical and subtropical central and eastern Africa. It was first described in 1920 by the English botanist John Hutchinson, who named it after the English botanist William Tyrer Gerrard who collected plants and seeds in southern Africa in the 1860s.
Faurea galpinii is a small tree that grows to 10 m (20 ft.) tall, but its trunks will vary depending on growing conditions. The leaves of F. galpinii are alternately lanceolate with wavy margins. When growing in the forest, the bark appears grey with smooth, concentric rings, although it can appear rough and dark under exposed conditions, and the variety Faurea gal pinii varies in size from 1 m to 2 m.