36 HOUGH'S AMERICAN WOODS. 



321. BOURRERIA HAVANENSIS MIERS. 



STRONGBACK. STRONGBARK. 



Ger., Havanische Bourreria. Fr., Bourrerier de Havana. 



Sp., Ateje, Ircuma, Bureria. 



SPECIFIC CHARACTERS : Leaves obovate-oblong, 2-3^2 in. long, mostly rounded 

 at apex, cuneate at base, with entire revolute margin, smooth and lustrous yellow 

 green above, somewhat paler beneath ; petioles slender l / 2 to I in. long. Flowers 

 appearing at almost all seasons, in glabrous terminal cymes 3-4 in. across ; calyx 

 bell-shaped, about Y^ in. long; corolla creamy white, with tube about l / 2 in. long 

 and nearly orbicular, spreading lobes, about Y^ in. across when expanded. Fruit 

 subglobose, about ^ in. in diameter, orange red, with tough skin, tipped with the 

 remnants of the style and subtended by the somewhat enlarged calyx lobes. 



The Strong-back tree occasionally attains the height of 30 or 40 ft. 

 (i2rn.), with trunk 8 or 10 in. (0.25111.) in diameter, but it is usually 

 smaller. The bark of trunk is of a brownish gray color, quite smooth 

 and* exfoliating in small irregular scales. 



HABITAT. Hammocks of .the Florida Keys, the Bahama Islands and 

 many of the Antilles. 



PHYSICAL PROPERTIES. The wood of this species is quite soft, 

 light, brittle and of a very different type of structure from that of 

 ordinary woods. It consists of a system of close fibro-vascular tissue 

 permeated with spaces, in concentric arrangement, occupied by a very 

 delicate, pith-like parenchymatous tissue and minute transparent 

 crystals. There are no distinct annual rings, but many fine medullary 

 rays are neadily seen with aid of a hand magnifier. In sectioning the 

 wood we found its behavior to be similar to that of the Yucca and like 

 that we have to protect the transverse sections with celluloid, owing to 

 its fragile nature. 



The U. S. government tests in connection with the Tenth Census 

 investigation gives the following data concerning the physical proper- 

 ties of this wood. Specific Gravity, 0.8073 5 Percentage of Ash, 2.79 ; 

 Relative Approximate Fuel Value, 0,7848; Coefficient of Elasticity, 

 99649; Modulus of Rupture, 944; Resistance to Longitudinal Pressure, 

 575; Resistance to Indentation, 294; Weight of a Cubic Foot in 

 Pounds, 50.31. 



USES. Little if any use is made of the wood of this tree, but we 

 are informed that a tea is made from its bark on the Bahama Islands. 



