Mahogany

Where it grows

Big-leaf mahogany ranges from southern Mexico through Central America into the western Amazon basin. Cuban mahogany (Swietenia mahagoni) was the original 17th-century source but was logged to near-commercial extinction by 1900, after which big-leaf became the leading commercial species.

How to recognise it

A massively buttressed trunk supports a high, spreading crown of compound leaves with paired glossy leaflets. The greenish flowers are small and produce upright, woody, pear-shaped capsules that split open from the base and release winged seeds. The freshly cut heartwood is pinkish, deepening to a rich red-brown with age.

Uses

Mahogany is famously dimensionally stable, easy to carve, and ages into a deep lustrous patina. It was the wood of choice for Georgian and Federal-style furniture, traditional acoustic guitars (Martin, Gibson), and the panelling of grand pianos and Pullman railroad cars.

Conservation

Big-leaf mahogany is listed on CITES Appendix II, restricting international trade. Most surviving wild stands are in the southwestern Amazon, where illegal logging and frontier expansion continue to threaten them.