Guarea

Guarea is a genus of evergreen trees or shrubs in the family Meliaceae, native to tropical Africa and Central and South America. At their largest, they are large trees 20–45 m tall, with a trunk over 1 m diameter, often buttressed at the base. The leaves are pinnate, with 4–6 pairs of leaflets, the terminal leaflet present. They are dioecious, with male and female flowers on separate plants.^[1] The flowers are produced in loose inflorescences, each flower small, with 4–5 yellowish petals. The fruit is a four or five-valved capsule, containing several seeds, each surrounded by a yellow-orange fleshy aril; the seeds are dispersed by hornbills and monkeys which eat the aril.

Guarea
Guarea guidonia
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Sapindales
Family:	Meliaceae
Subfamily:	Melioideae
Genus:	Guarea F. Allam ex L.
Species
See text

Species

Species accepted by Plants of the World Online as of March 2019:^[2]

• Guarea aguilarii Al.Rodr.
• Guarea anomala T.D.Penn.
• Guarea bijuga C.DC.
• Guarea blanchetii C.DC.
• Guarea bullata Radlk.
• Guarea carapoides Harms
• Guarea carinata Ducke
• Guarea cartaguenya Cuatrec.
• Guarea casimiriana Harms
• Guarea caulobotrys Cuatrec. (also spelt caulobotryis)
• Guarea chiricana Standl.
• Guarea cinnamomea Harms
• Guarea constricta Al.Rodr.
• Guarea convergens T.D.Penn.
• Guarea corrugata Cuatrec.
• Guarea corticosa Al.Rodr.
• Guarea costata A.Juss.
• Guarea crispa T.D.Penn.
• Guarea cristata T.D.Penn.
• Guarea donnell-smithii C.DC.
• Guarea ecuadoriensis W.Palacios
• Guarea eriorhachis Harms
• Guarea fissicalyx Harms
• Guarea fistulosa W.Palacios
• Guarea gentryi Coronado
• Guarea glabra Vahl
• Guarea gomma Pulle
• Guarea gracilis T.D.Penn.
• Guarea grossa T.D.Penn.
• Guarea guentheri Harms
• Guarea guidonia (L.) Sleumer
• Guarea hoffmanniana C.DC.
• Guarea humaitensis T.D.Penn.
• Guarea inesiana Al.Rodr.
• Guarea jamaicensis Proctor
• Guarea juglandiformis T.D.Penn.
• Guarea kunthiana A.Juss.
• Guarea lozanoi Morales-P.
• Guarea luxii C.DC.
• Guarea macrocalyx Al.Rodr.
• Guarea macrophylla Vahl
• Guarea megacostata T.D.Penn.
• Guarea megantha A.Juss.
• Guarea mexicana Coronado
• Guarea michel-moddei T.D.Penn. & S.A.Mori
• Guarea pendula R.da Silva Ramalho, A.L.Pinheiro & T.D.Penn.
• Guarea persistens W.Palacios
• Guarea polymera Little
• Guarea pterorhachis Harms
• Guarea pubescens (Rich.) A.Juss.
• Guarea purusana C.DC.
• Guarea pyriformis T.D.Penn.
• Guarea reticulatovenosa T.D.Penn.
• Guarea rhopalocarpa Radlk.
• Guarea riparia W.Palacios
• Guarea scabra A.Juss.
• Guarea silvatica C.DC.
• Guarea sphenophylla Urb.
• Guarea sprucei C.DC.
• Guarea subandina W.Palacios
• Guarea subsessilifolia Al.Rodr.
• Guarea tafae-malekui Al.Rodr.
• Guarea talamancana Gómez-Laur. & Valerio
• Guarea tonduzii C.DC.
• Guarea trunciflora C.DC.
• Guarea velutina A.Juss.
• Guarea venenata T.D.Penn.
• Guarea zarceroensis Coronado
• Guarea zepivae T.D.Penn.

Uses

The timber is important; the African species are known as bossé, guarea, or pink mahogany, and the South American species as cramantee or American muskwood. It is said to possibly cause hallucinations if ingested.^[3]

Corinthos sculpture in guarea wood by Barbara Hepworth at Tate Liverpool^[4]

The wood can be used for sculpture and was favoured by the British 20th century sculptor Barbara Hepworth.^[4]