Replies

1. 
   eddiefromaustralia | Aug 06, 2002 04:25am | #1

   Rich,

   Have seen turnings from jacaranda, don't know how it would go on furniture - perhaps try a search on google and see what you turn up?

   Cheers,

   Eddie

1. 
   RSRose | Aug 06, 2002 04:42am | #2

   Search on Google . . . hmm . . . why didn't I think of that? Guess I wanted an easy answer!

   Well, searching a few dozen sites, I see mostly crude carvings of animals in a light brown wood that seems to have indistict grain. One site shows a gorgeous piano in "jacaranda wood" that appears to be a magnificent Rosewood.

   Edited 8/5/2002 9:43:06 PM ET by Rich Rose

1. 
   eddiefromaustralia | Aug 06, 2002 07:03am | #5

   Hi Rich,

   Spent 5 min on google, as I remembered the turnings as being fairly bland timber.

   Here's what I found that looked promising. Agree with Jon - give it a go.

   http://agroforester.com/futfor/multispecies.html

   http://home.iprimus.com.au/cjsfurn/jacact.htm

   Let us know how it turns out!

   Eddie

1. 
   RSRose | Aug 06, 2002 08:34am | #6

   OK,

   I might actually have some useable stuff here.

2. 
   jonsherryl | Aug 06, 2002 05:03am | #3

   Rich, the common name jacaranda is sometimes used to refer to rosewood, but it's also the common name for some Latin American members of the Bignoniaceae family. Our only native timber producing species belonging to this family is catalpa, but there are a lot of tropical woods in the Bignoniaceae, including primavera. In fact, this family produces some very nice, light duty cabinetwoods...so, you might have a winner here. It's certainly worth taking some samples and giving it a try.

1. 
   RSRose | Aug 06, 2002 05:31am | #4

   Thanks Jon. This tree is like every Jacaranda tree I have ever seen. It produces beautiful lacy lavender leaves in the spring. Grows very tall and wide. I've seen some in the neighborhood over 50 feet.

   I haven't opened a log up yet. They are surprisingly heavy. The cut ends are pale, about the color of Maple. Because the new branches which seem to spring off the main trunk like "suckers" stay green for a long time before they seem to develop a "bark," I've always thought of these trees as large bushes.

   Should I cut them at this stage to dry?

   Rich

   Edited 8/5/2002 10:31:54 PM ET by Rich Rose

1. 
   jonsherryl | Aug 06, 2002 01:47pm | #7

   Rich, the Bignoniaceae is sometimes called the trumpet creeper family. Many of its species are vines and an identifying characteristic of the family are the beautiful trumpet shaped flowers most of its members produce. Some of the tropical species become large enough trees to produce respectable saw logs, as do our two native catalpas (especially the northern catalpa; Catalpa speciosa.) Many of the more decorative cultivars are on the small side. The woods tend to be rather soft and a little spungy, like our catalpa, but some of the tropical species are moderately dense...in the mahogany-walnut range. They're nothing like the rosewoods in terms of density nor are they as pigmented. Most of them are in the beige to tan range and rather bland figured. Our native catalpa is ring-porous and among the more attractive woods in this family...But the bignoniaceae is perhaps best known for primavera. This Central American species (now scarce) was once a very important cabinet wood with working properties and figure similar to genuine mahogany, but much blonder in color.

   ...As for when to mill the logs into lumber that is ready for drying, the sooner the better. To minimize degrade and shorten the drying time, it's always best to convert the logs to the dimensions you want (4/4, 6/4, 8/4, etc) while the wood is "green", i.e., well above its Fiber Saturation Point. Otherwise, it will begin to develop fine checks and once they get started they only get worse. Also, be sure to coat the end grain as soon as possible. Most of these woods are rather stable (at least our catalpa and also primavera experience very low shrinkage) so this stuff shouldn't be too difficult to air dry.

1. 
   RSRose | Aug 06, 2002 07:18pm | #8

   Jon,

   Thanks. I probably will have a chance to open one of the logs later today.

   Rich

3. 
   jeffn7 | Aug 07, 2002 05:41pm | #9

   off the topic, slightly, but Jacaranda trees are very common in South Africa and I don't think I will ever forget the sight of thousands of these trees in full bloom on what is an otherwise stark plain around Johannesburg. They are quite honestly some of the most beautiful trees I have ever seen... although I have no idea how workable the wood is! Thanks for allowing me a sentimental moment.

1. 
   RSRose | Aug 07, 2002 07:05pm | #11

   We have many large stands of them on Maui. They are very beautiful. From a distance, when they are in bloom, the misty lavendar lace of their leaves is magical.

   I've opened one of the logs. The wood is a pale cream color with some pink shades with a very fine, sharply defined grain which is irridescent when I plane the surface. Almost like a blond mahogany. No figure to speak of. Just a few slightly darker tan areas. I don't particularly like the smell of the wet wood.

   The longest log that the cutters left me is about 15 inches. No log is more than 6 inches. I don't know if I'll find any use for this wood, but I'm going to get it sawed up over the weekend.

   Rich

1. 
   RSRose | Aug 08, 2002 10:25pm | #12

   For those still following (and, even those those not): Jacaranda in my evaluation appears to be a blond version of Luan. Looks like a blond mahogany. Soft, light. Interesting, but not worth more sawing to me.

   (Maybe it showed up in so many web sites as various carvings because it's an easy, light-weight wood to carve).

   Rich

   Edited 8/8/2002 3:27:14 PM ET by Rich Rose

1. 
   qldwoodie | Aug 09, 2002 12:45am | #13

   Jacaranda: Any plant of the genus Jacaranda (family Bignoniaceae), especially the two ornamental trees J. mimosifolia and J. cuspidifolia. Jacarandas are grown widely in warm parts of the world and in greenhouses for their showy blue or violet flowers and attractive, oppositely paired, compound leaves. The genus includes about 50 species native to Central and S. America and the W. Indies. The name is also applied to several tree species of the genera Machaerium and Dalbergia in the pea family (see legume), the sources of commercial rosewood. (The Britannica Concise Dictionary)

   Your description of "Lavender foliage" threw me a bit.  This is the problem with common names, even when they are taken from botanical names!  I got the above off a site that has a picture of a tree in full-flower - it looks exactly like the exotic 'Jacarandas' that are grown as ornamentals along the east coast of Australia - I think they are J. mimosifolia.  The wood turners here find it a very good wood to turn - it is soft, and has a bland colour, but it is one of the few woods round these parts that will dry in the round without cracking.  It is also prone to sapstain and spalting which can make it much more interesting colour-wise (saw some good examples last weekend at a display in Brisbane).  I have found the wood very useful for chair seats - it's quite strong and tough for its weight, but carves easily.  It also has a grain structure very reminiscent of Elm - a little judicious staining can make a repair to European Elm very hard to spot!  The trees that grow here are usually in open situations, multi-stemmed and rarely have straight sections of more than a few feet, so they are not prized as sawlogs.....

   Cheers,  Ian W

1. 
   RSRose | Aug 09, 2002 12:49am | #14

   I should not have said lavender folliage. Should have said blossums.

   Rich

2. 
   jonsherryl | Aug 09, 2002 03:33am | #15

   Ian, I sure do wish you Aussies'd keep your mits off our New World species.  You transplant them down there, change there names (usually to something they aren't) so we don't know what they are anymore and then have the gall to sell them back to us. We oughta send you another boat load of rabbits..:o)

3. 
   qldwoodie | Aug 09, 2002 05:22am | #16

   Hey, wotchit, Jon - We'll reply with another boatload of useless Eucalypts! 

   For once, we seem to have adopted the (correct) botanical name for the ornamental Jacaranda.  It is a pretty sight around late October, when the trees are in full blossom - they drop all their leaves just before flowering.  You don't realise just how many are planted in the city until they flower.  As an undergrad, a few (many!) yrs back, we loathed them, because they signalled the start of the end-of-year exam marathon.  If you hadn't begun hitting the books by the time the Jacarandas were in full bloom, you were in deeeep trouble..........

   Anyways, I seem to remember seing some pretty large plantings of some of our Aussie species in Hawaii (sp??) and the much-vaunted "Royal Hawaiin nut" is none other than our Queensland Macadamia (another Proteacea member).  So we're not alone in fiddling the names.

   avag'day, mate  ;-) 

4. 
   dhpascoe | Aug 10, 2002 04:51am | #17

   Probably melaleuca, too, that has completely taken over south Florida. Useless friggin tree grows in circles. There's a joke on us for sure!

   Dave of Fla.

4. 
   dhpascoe | Aug 07, 2002 07:04pm | #10

   The wood is extremely heavy because it is extremely wet. You'll have a huge problem with shrinkage and cracking. It is very fast growing -- one in my yard grew from seed to 2' diameter in 8 years! Cut it down because it was taking over the house. Planked a segment but within a month it was twisted, cracked junk. Somehow you'd have to control the drying rate, hard to do in Florida. Also very vulnerable to black mold.

   Dave of Florida