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Color/Appearance: Black Ironwood’s heartwood can be a range of reds, oranges, violets, and browns. Pale yellowish white sapwood is clearly demarcated from heartwood.
Grain/Texture: Black Ironwood has a straight and even grain with a very fine texture and high natural luster.
Endgrain: Diffuse-porous; small to medium pores in no specific arrangement, moderately numerous; solitary and radial multiples of 2-3; gum deposits in heartwood pores present; growth rings usually indistinct; narrow rays not visible without lens, close spacing; parenchyma vasicentric.
Rot Resistance: Reported to be very resistant to decay, and also resistant to termites.
Workability: High cutting resistance, and difficult to work due to density. Turns and finishes well.
Odor: No characteristic odor.
Allergies/Toxicity: Besides the standard health risks associated with any type of wood dust, no further health reactions have been associated with Black Ironwood. See the articles Wood Allergies and Toxicityand Wood Dust Safetyfor more information.
Pricing/Availability: Black Ironwood tends to be a very small tree, barely exceeding the size of a shrub. Because of it’s small size and high density, it’s not sold commercially. Small pieces may be available for hobbyist or specialty purposes within its natural range.
Sustainability: This wood species is not listed in the CITES Appendices or on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Common Uses: Firewood, veneer, and small turned objects.
Comments: Among the heaviest woods on earth, Black Ironwood is found in southern Florida, making it the heaviest wood in the United States, (along with the unrelated Desert Ironwoodperhaps being a close second).
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