Partridgewood | The Wood Database (Hardwood) (original) (raw)

Partridgewood (Andira inermis)

Common Name(s): Partridgewood, angelim, cabbagebark

Scientific Name: Andira inermis

Distribution: From southern Mexico to northern South America

Tree Size: 65-115 ft (20-35 m) tall,

2 ft (.6 m) trunk diameter

Average Dried Weight: 52 lbs/ft3 (835 kg/m3)

Specific Gravity (Basic, 12% MC): 0.64, 0.83

Janka Hardness: 1,790 lbf (7,960 N)

Modulus of Rupture: 18,490 lbf/in2 (127.5 MPa)

Elastic Modulus: 2,634,000 lbf/in2 (18.17 GPa)

Crushing Strength: 9,290 lbf/in2 (64.1 MPa)

Shrinkage: Radial: 4.6%, Tangential: 8.6%,

Volumetric: 12.3%, T/R Ratio: 1.9

Color/Appearance: Heartwood ranges from golden yellow to darker reddish brown. Parenchyma bands of varying thickness give an subtle, jagged and streaked appearance. (As the parenchyma is lighter in color, the wider the bands, the lighter the overall color of the wood, in general.) Narrow sapwood is a grayish yellow, and is clearly demarcated from the heartwood.

Grain/Texture: Grain is straight to slightly interlocked. Texture is very coarse and porous, with low natural luster.

Rot Resistance: Rated as durable to very durable; moderate insect resistance.

Workability: Generally easy to work, though interlocked grain can cause tearout during surfacing operations. Glues, turns, and finishes well.

Odor: No characteristic odor.

Allergies/Toxicity: Although severe reactions are quite uncommon, partridgewood has been reported to cause skin irritation, as well as hives and coughing. See the articles Wood Allergies and Toxicity and Wood Dust Safety for more information.

Pricing/Availability: Not commonly available; smaller craft lumber or turning blanks are occasionally available. Expect prices to be in the mid-range for an imported hardwood.

Sustainability: This wood species is not listed in the CITES Appendices, and is reported by the IUCN as being a species of least concern.

Common Uses: Furniture, cabinetry, carvings, and turned objects; used locally as a construction lumber.

Comments: Partridgewood gets its name from the grain of the wood, which, due to its very wide, contrasting parenchyma bands, resembles the wing of a partridge. In tree form, this species is known more commonly as angelim or cabbagebark.

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Partridgewood and Tasmanian myrtle (turned)

Porosity: diffuse porous

Arrangement: solitary and radial multiples

Vessels: very large, few to very few; reddish-brown deposits occasionally present

Parenchyma: confluent and banded (occurring in very wide bands)

Rays: medium width; normal spacing

Lookalikes/Substitutes: Appearance is very similar to Hymenolobium petraeum, another tree that is known by the ambiguous common name angelim.

Notes: None.

Though the Andira genus contains about 50 different species, there are only a handful of commercial species, all of which are sold interchangeably as partridgewood. Far and away, the most common is A. inermis, but other species sometimes harvested include A. coriacea and A. surinamensis.

A closely related genus is Vouacapoua, which contains only one species, V. americana, sold commercially as brownheart.