| | Commercial timbers |
Nomenclature etc. CORNACEAE (MASTIXIACEAE). Incl. M. arborea C.B. Clarke, M. caudatilimba C. Y. Wu, M. crassifolia Merrill, M. korthalsiana Wang, M. pentandra Bl., M. philippinensis Wang, M. rostrata Blume, M. tetrandra C. B. Clarke, M. trichotoma Blume. Trade and local names: bebung, nyaling (ID); tebu-tebu, tetebu (MY); apanit (PH). Not protected under CITES regulations.
Geographic distribution: India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Indomalesia, Pacific Islands.
General. Heartwood basically white or grey. Sapwood colour similar to heartwood colour. Density 0.38–0.77 g/cm³.
Vessels. Wood diffuse porous. Vessels in multiples, commonly in clusters. Vessel outline angular. Average tangential vessel diameter 50–90–150 µm. Average number of vessels/mm² 30–75. Perforation plates scalariform, with 20–50 bars. Intervessel pits scalariform and opposite, average diameter (vertical) 4–8 µm. Vessel-ray pits with reduced borders or apparently simple, similar to intervessel pits, rounded or angular and horizontal to vertical, of two distinct sizes or types in the same ray cell, of the same type in adjacent elements and unilaterally compound and coarse. Helical thickenings present and absent (helical thickenings observed in M. korthalsiana, M. pentandra, M. philippinensis), in narrow and wide vessel elements, only in vessel element tails. Tyloses present or absent, thinwalled.
Tracheids and fibres. Fibres very thin-walled, or of medium wall thickness. Fibre pits common in both radial and tangential walls, distinctly bordered.
Axial parenchyma. Axial parenchyma apotracheal and paratracheal. Apotracheal axial parenchyma diffuse and diffuse-in-aggregates. Paratracheal axial parenchyma scanty. Axial parenchyma as strands. Average number of cells per strand: 5–9.
Rays. Rays (3–)4–6(–7) per tangential mm, multiseriate, (1–)3–6(–8) cells wide. Rays of two distinct sizes. Height of large rays commonly over 1000 µm. Rays composed of two or more cell types (heterocellular). Heterocellular rays with square and upright cells restricted to marginal rows, mostly 2–4 marginal rows of upright or square cells and with more than 4 marginal rows of upright or square cells. Sheath cells present. Uniseriate rays composed exclusively of upright cells.
Secretory structures. Intercellular canals present or absent, oriented axially, axial intercellular canals in long tangential lines. Intercellular canals observed in M. philippinensis, M. rostrata, M. trichotoma.
Mineral inclusions. Crystals present and not observed (crystals present in: M. korthalsiana, M. pentandra, i M. rostrata)), prismatic, located in ray cells. Crystal-containing ray cells procumbent, upright and/or square ray cells chambered and not chambered. Silica not observed.
Physical and chemical tests. Heartwood not fluorescent. Water extract not fluorescent; colour of water extract colourless to brown. Ethanol extract not fluorescent. Colour of ethanol extract colourless to brown. Chrome azurol-S test positive. Froth test positive (weakly). Splinter burns to full ash. Ash white to grey.
Illustrations. • Transverse section. Mastixia pentandra. • Tangential section. Mastixia pentandra. • Radial section. Mastixia pentandra. • Perforation plates; intervessel pits. Mastixia pentandra. scalariform perforation plates and vessel-ray pits (left); prismatic crystals in rays (right).
The interactive key allows access to the character list, illustrations, full and partial descriptions, diagnostic descriptions, differences and similarities between taxa, lists of taxa exhibiting specified attributes, summaries of attributes within groups of taxa, and geographical distribution.
Cite this publication as: ‘Richter, H.G., and Dallwitz, M.J. 2000 onwards. Commercial timbers: descriptions, illustrations, identification, and information retrieval. In English, French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish. Version: 9th April 2019. delta-intkey.com’.
