Page 41 - BSAM 2017 Q1

A er looking around at last I could see a plant in a poly bag that probably could meet my desire of having a bending logwood bonsai. We negotiated the price and at last the plant belonged to me.
Here was the shape of the tree in Puerto Rico a er the cutting process.
I immediately asked for a saw to cut the plant to establish the rst shaping as well as to make it easier to bring the plant home. e cut was made above some branches growing from the straight part of the trunk above a dramatic bend.
2010
2009
A er returning home, I put the plant in a bigger pot to let it grow quicker and better. Some six months later I took the picture of the plant.
January/February/March 2017 | BCI | 39
USES of Haematoxylum campechianum:
H. campechianum is a widely cultivated tree and its wood is used to extract a series of dyes in darker tints of grey, brown, violet, blue and black called “haematoxylin”. The dyes give a permanent color to several fabrics such as silk, wool, cotton, nylon and rayon. This extract
is also used to dye leather, fur, feathers and paper and to produce inks. The haematoxylin
is also a histological stain used for staining cell nuclei (Seegeler, 1992; Gurib-Fakim, 2005).
In Southeastern Asia and Africa, it is also used as timber in the fabrication of furniture, veneer, and wood articles. The wood of this species is strong and durable for use outdoors and in contact with the ground. Wood is also used as rewood and for posts.
This species is also planted around houses
as an ornamental for its delicate foliage and fragrant owers. Flowers are honey bearing and consequently the species is frequently planted by apiculturists near beehives. The leaves and young branches are used as forage (Niembro 1986, Rico-Gray et al., 1991).
H. campechianum is used in traditional medicine as an astringent and tonic. It is
also useful against diarrhoea, dysentery, dyspepsia, and leucorrhoea. The extract “haematoxylin”has been shown to possess anti-in ammatory properties (Seegeler, 1992; Gurib-Fakim, 2005; Graveson, 2012). Finally, this species is used as a boundary, barrier or support plant, and in India and Southeastern Asia, it is occasionally cultivated as a hedge plant.