Sweetia fruticosa
Specifications
Family
Fabaceae
Species
Sweetia fruticosa Spreng.
shrubby sweetia.
Description
The sapwood is yellowish and the heartwood is yellow-brown, with dark veins and an unpleasant rancid odor. The texture is coarse, the grain interwoven, and the density ranges from 0.95 to 1.15. It has excellent mechanical strength and durability.
Plant morphology
It is a tree 10–18 m tall with an erect trunk 40–60 cm in diameter and light gray, peeling bark. The leaves are odd-pinnate and pubescent on the underside. The flowers are inconspicuous, yellowish, and clustered in inflorescences at the base of the leaves.
Natural occurrence
Countries of origin and distribution
South America: Northern Argentina, Paraguay, Bolivia, Brazil.
Habitat and ecology
Shade-loving deciduous species apparently indifferent to the substrate, it grows in both rainforest and semi-deciduous forest.
Uses
Application areas
It is used in construction and carpentry in general, railway sleepers, furnishings and heavy furniture.
Technical data
Aesthetic characteristics
Grain
Obvious
Texture
Medium
Physical and mechanical properties
Density
ρ
ρ
860
kg/m3
Radial shrinkage
Rad. sh.
Rad. sh.
41
MPa
Tangential shrinkage
Tang. sh.
Tang. sh.
7
MPa
Modulus of Elasticity
M.O.E.
M.O.E.
13906
MPa
Durability characteristics
Fungal resistance
Very durable
Insect resistance
Resistant