''Chlorocardium'' is a genus of the family

Lauraceae Lauraceae, or the laurels, is a plant family that includes the true laurel and its closest relatives. This family comprises about 2850 known species in about 45 genera worldwide (Christenhusz & Byng 2016 ). They are dicotyledons, and occur ma ...

. It contains only three species, '' C. esmeraldense'', '' C. rodiei'' and '' C. venenosum'', and is native to northern

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

. The name ''Chlorocardium'' means green ( chloro-) heart (

cardia The stomach is a muscular, hollow organ in the gastrointestinal tract of humans and many other animals, including several invertebrates. The stomach has a dilated structure and functions as a vital organ in the digestive system. The stomach is ...

), referring to the wood. They are

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

s up to 40 m high, mostly 30 m high, and are

hermaphrodite In reproductive biology, a hermaphrodite () is an organism that has both kinds of reproductive organs and can produce both gametes associated with male and female sexes. Many Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic groups of animals (mostly invertebrate ...

s. They are slow-growing canopy evergreen trees and have a valuable timber. The wood and bark are pleasantly scented. They are present in Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, and the Guiana Shield (in northeastern Brazil, Venezuela ( Amazonas, Bolívar and

Delta Amacuro Delta Amacuro State ( es, Estado Delta Amacuro, ) is one of the 23 states of Venezuela, and is the location of the Orinoco Delta. The Paria Gulf and the Atlantic Ocean are found to the north, Bolívar State is found to the south, the Atlantic O ...

states), Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana). The species are heavily used by the timber industry. This causes a shortage of mature trees. Their timber is of great commercial value and much exploited, but ''C. rodiei'' is able to produce sprouts from more than 50% of stumps.

Ecology

Trees of this genus grow in evergreen tropical forests. The ecological requirements are those of moisture precipitating almost continuously in cloud-cover for much of the year. The fruit, a drupe, is an important food source for birds. The common name in Guyana is greenheart or greenhart.

References

External links

Antarctic vessel the 'Hero' takes compression much better than steel. Built from green heart wood. "She's like a Sherman tank."
Portland Magazine. 8 November 2012] {{Taxonbar, from=Q2391012 Lauraceae genera Trees of northern South America Trees of western South America Lauraceae