''Khaya'' is a genus of five

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 ...

species in the mahogany family

Meliaceae Meliaceae, the mahogany family, is a flowering plant family of mostly trees and shrubs (and a few herbaceous plants, mangroves) in the order Sapindales. They are characterised by alternate, usually pinnate leaves without stipules, and by syncarp ...

. The

timber Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...

of ''Khaya'' is called African mahogany, and is valued as a substitute to American mahogany (of the genus ''

Swietenia ''Swietenia'' is a genus of trees in the chinaberry family, Meliaceae. It occurs natively in the Neotropics, from southern Florida, the Caribbean, Mexico and Central America south to Bolivia. The genus is named for Dutch-Austrian physician Gerar ...

'').

Description

The genus is native to tropical

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

and

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

. All species grow to around 30–35m tall, rarely 45m, with a trunk over 1m diameter, often buttressed at the base. The

leaves A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...

are pinnate, with 4-6 pairs of leaflets, the terminal leaflet absent; each leaflet is 10–15 cm long abruptly rounded toward the apex but often with an acuminate tip. The leaves can be either

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, which ...

depending on the species. The

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

s are produced in loose

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed o ...

s, each flower small, with four or five yellowish petals and ten stamens. The

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

is a globose four or five-valved capsule 5–8 cm diameter, containing numerous winged

seed A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiospe ...

Species

*''

Khaya anthotheca ''Khaya anthotheca'', with the common name East African mahogany, is a large tree species in the Meliaceae family, native to tropical Africa. The name ''anthotheca'' was taken from the Greek word ''anthos'', meaning flower, while ''theca'' refer ...

'' ( syn. ''K. nyasica'') *''

Khaya grandifoliola ''Khaya grandifoliola'', also called African mahogany, Benin mahogany, large-leaved mahogany, or Senegal mahogany, is a species of plant in the family Meliaceae. It is found in Benin, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guin ...

'' *''

Khaya ivorensis ''Khaya ivorensis'', also called African mahogany or Lagos mahogany, is a tall forest tree with a buttressed trunk in the family Meliaceae. It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Gabon, Ghana, Liberia, and Nigeria where it grows primar ...

'' *''

Khaya madagascariensis ''Khaya madagascariensis'' is a species of plant in the family Meliaceae. It is found in Comoros and Madagascar. Description ''Khaya madagascariensis'' is an evergreen tree which grows 13 to 24 meters tall. Range and habitat ''Khaya madagascari ...

'' *''

Khaya senegalensis ''Khaya senegalensis'' is a species of tree in the Meliaceae family that is native to Africa. Common names include African mahogany, dry zone mahogany, Gambia mahogany, khaya wood, Senegal mahogany, ''cailcedrat'', ''acajou'', ''djalla'', and '' ...

Uses

The timber of ''Khaya'' is called "African mahogany", with wood properties generally regarded as the closest to genuine

mahogany Mahogany is a straight-grained, reddish-brown timber of three tropical hardwood species of the genus ''Swietenia'', indigenous to the AmericasBridgewater, Samuel (2012). ''A Natural History of Belize: Inside the Maya Forest''. Austin: Unive ...

. The seeds of ''K. senegalensis'' have an oil content of 52.5%, consisting of 21%

palmitic acid Palmitic acid (hexadecanoic acid in IUPAC nomenclature) is a fatty acid with a 16-carbon chain. It is the most common saturated fatty acid found in animals, plants and microorganisms.Gunstone, F. D., John L. Harwood, and Albert J. Dijkstra. The Li ...

, 10%

stearic acid Stearic acid ( , ) is a saturated fatty acid with an 18-carbon chain. The IUPAC name is octadecanoic acid. It is a waxy solid and its chemical formula is C17H35CO2H. Its name comes from the Greek word στέαρ "''stéar''", which means tallow. ...

, 65%

oleic acid Oleic acid is a fatty acid that occurs naturally in various animal and vegetable fats and oils. It is an odorless, colorless oil, although commercial samples may be yellowish. In chemical terms, oleic acid is classified as a monounsaturated omega ...

, and 4% "unidentifiable acid" The durable reddish-brown wood of ''K. anthotheca'' is used for

dug-out canoe A dugout canoe or simply dugout is a boat made from a hollowed tree. Other names for this type of boat are logboat and monoxylon. ''Monoxylon'' (''μονόξυλον'') (pl: ''monoxyla'') is Greek – ''mono-'' (single) + '' ξύλον xylon'' (t ...

s or

makoro A mokoro (also spelled ''makoro'', Setswana-English-Setswana Dictionary, Macmillan Botswana, 4th edition) is a type of canoe commonly used in the Okavango Delta and on the Chobe River in Botswana. It is propelled through the shallow waters of th ...

s and as a general beam, door frame and shelving timber which is

termite Termites are small insects that live in colonies and have distinct castes (eusocial) and feed on wood or other dead plant matter. Termites comprise the infraorder Isoptera, or alternatively the epifamily Termitoidae, within the order Blattode ...

and borer resistant.Joffe, Pitta: (2007),'' Indigenous Plants of South Africa'', Briza Publications, pg 123

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q134051 Meliaceae genera