13.07.2021. Guarea cedrata, Guarea laurentii De Wild. and Guarea thompsonii Sprague & Hutch is all traded as Bosse. Evergreen, large tree up to 45(–55) m tall; bole branchless for up to 26 (–41) m, usually straight and cylindrical, sometimes fluted, up to 150(–200) cm in diameter, sometimes with spreading, blunt buttresses up to 3 m high.
Leplaea cedrata (Guarea cedrata) from Koenen, Erik J.M.; de Wilde, Jan J.F.E. A taxonomic revision of the reinstated genus Leplaea and the newly recognized genus Neoguarea (Meliaceae, Sapindales): the exclusion of Guarea from Africa, in Plant Ecology and Evolution, Volume 145, Number 2, July 2012, pp. 209-241 (33)
The bark surface is greyish to yellowish brown and smooth but exfoliating in small circular scales leaving concentric rings of markings (mussel shell pattern), inner bark pinkish or reddish pale brown, fibrous, with cedar-like smell.
Heartwood initially a pale pinkish brown, darkening with age to a more golden to medium brown. Pale yellowish sapwood is well defined. Can be highly figured, with grain patterns such as pommele being sought after in veneer form. Grain is irregular, wavy or interlocked, slightly moiré. Texture is medium to fine, with a good natural luster. The wood has a cedar-like smell when fresh. It may have a gummy exudate.
Bosse wood is very durable and uniform if we take into account its density, between 540 and 680 kg/m³ at 12% moisture content. It is highly appreciated for its durability and it is used primarily for exterior works, except in direct contact with water or ground.
Bosse is fairly easy to saw and work, with moderate blunting effects on cutting edges because the wood contains some silica. The gluing, nailing and screwing does not usually cause problems, helping to get a perfect finish, with little abrupt deformation by the resin.
The most common applications of Bosse are furniture and fine cabinetry (interior and exterior), and also the manufacture of musical instruments, boats (parts not in contact with water), frames, fingerjointed laminated scantlings (glulam), wagons and trucks, turned parts, carpentry for interior and exterior, doors, panelling, moldings, baseboards, trims, doors and windows, decorative veneers and plywood.
Traditionally, the wood is used for dug-out canoes.
The bark is used in traditional medicine. Bark decoctions or macerations are taken to treat stomach-ache and food poisoning.
To find out more:
Tropical Timber Atlas, p. 384 (Bosse clair) and p. 387 (Bosse foncé):
Tropix: https://tropix.cirad.fr/FichiersComplementaires/EN/Africa/BOSSE.pdf
All photos © INTERHOLCO except where otherwise indicated.
INTERHOLCO offers Sustainable Hardwood 'Made in Africa' as a responsible solution to promote better living conditions (construction with wood), reduce climate change, and increase social justice. As FSC-certified producer specialized in producing and trading logs, sawn timber, glued laminated scantlings and other products, INTERHOLCO manages the entire chain, from forest to customers since 1962. Harvesting wood selectively, INTERHOLCO protects 1.1 million hectares of natural forest from permanent conversion to agricultural land, giving 16’000 local inhabitants access to quality basic services and keeping the habitat of thousands of gorillas and elephants.
Communications contact INTERHOLCO
Tullia Baldassarri Höger von Högersthal
INTERHOLCO AG, Schutzengelstr. 36, 6340 Baar, Switzerland
Tel.: +41 (0)41 767 03 82
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