Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic material – a natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin that resists compression. Wood is sometimes defined as only the secondary xylem in the stems of trees, or more broadly to include the same type of tissue elsewhere, such as in the roots of trees or shrubs. In a living tree, it performs a mechanical-support function, enabling woody plants to grow large or to stand up by themselves. It also conveys water and nutrients among the leaves, other growing tissues, and the roots. Wood may also refer to other plant materials with comparable properties, and to material engineered from wood, woodchips, or fibers.
Haematoxylin or hematoxylin, also called natural black 1 or C.I. 75290, is a compound extracted from heartwood of the logwood tree with a chemical formula of C
16H
14O
6. This naturally derived dye has been used as a histologic stain, as an ink and as a dye in the textile and leather industry. As a dye, haematoxylin has been called palo de Campeche, logwood extract, bluewood and blackwood. In histology, haematoxylin staining is commonly followed by counterstaining with eosin. When paired, this staining procedure is known as H&E staining and is one of the most commonly used combinations in histology. In addition to its use in the H&E stain, haematoxylin is also a component of the Papanicolaou stain which is widely used in the study of cytology specimens.
Tamarind is a leguminous tree bearing edible fruit that is indigenous to tropical Africa and naturalized in Asia. The genus Tamarindus is monotypic, meaning that it contains only this species. It belongs to the family Fabaceae.
Paubrasilia echinata is a species of flowering plant in the legume family, Fabaceae, that is endemic to the Atlantic Forest of Brazil. It is a Brazilian timber tree commonly known as Pernambuco wood or brazilwood and is the national tree of Brazil. This plant has a dense, orange-red heartwood that takes a high shine, and it is the premier wood used for making bows for stringed instruments. The wood also yields a historically important red dye called brazilin, which oxidizes to brazilein.
Pulpwood can be defined as timber that is ground and processed into a fibrous pulp. It is a versatile natural resource commonly used for paper-making but also made into low-grade wood and used for chips, energy, pellets, and engineered products.
Haematoxylum campechianum is a species of flowering tree in the legume family, Fabaceae, that is native to southern Mexico, and introduced to the Caribbean, northern Central America, and other localities around the world.
Parkinsonia aculeata is a species of perennial flowering tree in the pea family, Fabaceae. Common names include palo verde, Mexican palo verde, Parkinsonia, Jerusalem thorn, jelly bean tree, palo de rayo, and retama.
A longbow is a type of tall bow that makes a fairly long draw possible. A longbow is not significantly recurved. Its limbs are relatively narrow and are circular or D-shaped in cross section. Flatbows can be just as long, but in cross-section, a flatbow has limbs that are approximately rectangular.
Bursera graveolens, known in Spanish as palo santo, is a wild tree native to the Yucatán Peninsula and also found in Peru and Venezuela.
Terminalia elliptica is a species of Terminalia native to southern and southeast Asia in India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. It is a prominent part of both dry and moist deciduous forests in southern India up to 1000 m.
Psychotria carthagenensis, also known as amyruca, is a South American rainforest understory shrub from the coffee family, Rubiaceae. It grows from the tropics of South America to Mexico.
Brazilin is a naturally occurring, homoisoflavonoid, red dye obtained from the wood of Paubrasilia echinata, Biancaea sappan, Caesalpinia violacea, and Haematoxylum brasiletto. Brazilin has been used since at least the Middle Ages to dye fabric, and has been used to make paints and inks as well. The specific color produced by the pigment depends on its manner of preparation: in an acidic solution brazilin will appear yellow, but in an alkaline preparation it will appear red. Brazilin is closely related to the blue-black dye precursor hematoxylin, having one fewer hydroxyl group. Brazilein, the active dye agent, is an oxidized form of brazilin.
The Balsas dry forests is a tropical dry broadleaf forest ecoregion located in western and central Mexico.
Bursera fagaroides is a species of flowering plant in the genus Bursera known by the common names torchwood copal and fragrant bursera. It is widespread across much of Mexico from Sonora to Oaxaca, and its range extends just into Arizona in the United States, although some sources suggest that it may now be extirpated in Arizona.
Quebracho is a common name in Spanish to describe very hard wood tree species. The etymology of the name derived from quiebrahacha, or quebrar hacha, meaning "axe-breaker". The corresponding English-language term for such hardwoods is breakax or breakaxe.
Pistacia integerrima is a species of pistachio tree native to Asia, commonly called zebrawood. It is often classified as Pistacia chinensis ssp. integerrima. It is used for a variety of purposes in India, including timber, dye, and fodder. The leaf galls are used in traditional herbalism for cough, asthma, fever, vomiting, and diarrhea.
Senna siamea, also known as Siamese cassia, kassod tree, cassod tree and cassia tree, is a legume in the subfamily Caesalpinioideae. It is native to South and Southeast Asia, although its exact origin is unknown.
Artocarpus lacucha, also known as monkey jack or monkey fruit, is a tropical evergreen tree species of the family Moraceae. It is distributed throughout the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia. The tree is valued for its wood; its fruit is edible and is believed to have medicinal value. In Northeastern Thailand, the wood is used to make pong lang, a local traditional instrument.
Commiphora africana, commonly called African myrrh, is a small deciduous tree belonging to the Burseraceae, a family akin to the Anacardiaceae, occurring widely over sub-Saharan Africa in Angola, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Chad, Eswatini, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Senegal, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. On sandy soils this species sometimes forms pure stands, deserving consideration as a plant community or association.
Millettia stuhlmannii, commonly known as panga panga, is a well-known species of timber tree that is native to the southeastern Afrotropics. The wood of the tropical species M. laurentii has similar qualities and uses, but is slightly darker, and lacks the copious yellowish white resin of the heartwood vessels. Its foliage is similar to that of Pterocarpus rotundifolius, and it may be confused with the latter when observed from a distance.
