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Hardwood and Softwood in the Philippines

BS Architecture (Lyceum of the Philippines University)

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HARDWOOD in the PHILIPPINES

KAMAGONG

Also known as Philippine Ebony, Kamagong is a wood unique to the country. With a black heartwood
(inner region) and gray sapwood, this produces dramatic, dark timber hence the name. The grain is often
grayish and has strong, dark brown streaks.

MOLAVE

One of the hardest local woods, molave has a fine texture that makes it smooth to the touch. It is available
in pale yellow to pinkish-brownish tone with a lighter sapwood (outer region), and mostly straight grain.
It has no distinct odor.

Ideal for: window frames, shipbuilding, structural posts, railroad tracks, and other outdoor applications

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NARRA

This very popular tropical wood has tones that range from yellow to red. The grain (texture and alignment
of wood fiber) is often interlocked and wavy, which creates interesting flame and ribbon figures when
quartersawn or flat sawn, which makes it a beautiful finishing material. Texture can be anywhere from
average-fine to average-coarse. The wood itself is lustrous and has an attractive odor. Narra is classified
as endangered and vulnerable here, and in Malaysia.

Ideal for: furnishings, floor planks, wall panels

TANGUILE

A moderately hard reddish wood, tanguile is one of the seven local woods often referred to as Philippine
Mahogany. This abundant wood type boasts of fine ribbon or straight grain. It is relatively soft and easy
to work on, but resilient enough for outdoor construction.

Ideal for: interior finishes, cabinets, boat building

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YAKAL

This resinous wood with yellow to golden-red tones is another local mahogany type. A high-grade timber,
yakal can tolerate harsh hot and cold weathers.

Ideal for: furniture, surface finishes, small weapons, and outdoor constructions

Dungon

Dungon is a large tree measuring up to 45 meters in height and 100 centimeters in diameter. It is slightly
fluted at the base and has buttresses. A large evergreen tree, trunk is buttressed; outer bark grayish-
reddish brown; shallowly fissured and scaly. Fruit has large wing, scaly, ellipsoid to globose nut with woody
wall.

The wood is said to be of good quality and used for piling, posts, foundation sills, ties, paving blocks,
bridge, wharf and ship building, framing, keels, keelsons, rudders, beams, joists, rafters, hubs, spokes,
felloes, axels, capstan bars, tool handles, mallets, and other wooden tools.

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Ipil-ipil

Ipil-ipil, more commonly referred to as merbau in the United States, is a hardwood harvested from tropical
forests. Merbau is currently listed on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List as an
endangered species due to a population reduction caused by a decline in its natural range, and by
exploitation. Certified merbau is available sporadically. Check with suppliers before attempting to
purchase merbau.

The stability of ipil-ipil makes it ideal for musical instruments, fine furniture, turned objects and specialty
woodworking projects. Because of low shrinkage and durability, the wood is used for stair treads, decking,
flooring, and outdoor furniture. The natural oil in ipil-ipil defends it against moisture, decay, and insects.
Drawbacks to the oil may include mild allergic reactions, and stains to clothing and other textiles,
especially when the wood is wet and bleeding oil from pores.

Tindalo

a timber tree (Pahudia rhomboidea) of the family Leguminosae of the Philippines having a hard valuable
wood like that of the ipil. Tindalo is a tree with an average height of 25 to 30 meters and a diameter of 60
to 80 meters.

Its trunk is straight, cylindrical, and has a regular bole ranging from 12 to 15 meters in length. The crown
is typically spreading to a size one half of the total height of the tree and deciduous (sheds its leaves)
during the dry season.

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Guijo (Shorea guiso)

A large Philippine timber tree of the family Dipterocarpaceae having strong heavy hard wood with a
striking figure and moderately fine texture. Outer bark grayish, narrowly fissured and cracking into small
flakes; inner bark pinkish brown

Langka

Langka is a smooth tree reaching a height of 8 to 15 meters. Leaves are alternate, leathery, elliptic-oblong
to obovate, entire, or sometimes 3-lobed, 7 to 15 centimeters long, the apex and base both pointed.

A small to medium-sized, evergreen tree that reaches 8 to 14 m high. It has a straight cylindrical, low
branched trunk that measures 30 to 100 cm in diameter and a dense, irregular, or spreading crown. Bark
is thick, grayish and exudes a milky sap when injured. Leaves alternate, spirally arranged, stiff and leathery,
dark green and shiny above and pale green beneath. Young leaves are pale yellowish green. Fruit is large,
covered with short pyramidal spines. Pericarp and pulp around the seeds are the edible portions. Pulp is
thick, rich yellow, sweet, and aromatic when ripe. Seeds are numerous and vary in size.

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Saplungan

Is also known as “yakalsaplungan”, but us harder, denser, and heavier than yakal. it is yellow with brown
streaks and is thus also called “tiger molave”. It was also once used for railroad ties and shipbuilding, and
its attributes are akin to molave, though it is more complicated to handle for carving and sculpting
projects. This wood was once abundant in the forested regions of Luzon.

Outer bark generally smooth in younger trees, fissured and scaly in matured ones.

Mahogany

Mahogany is a world-class wood species that is found in many variants, such as African Mahogany, Cuban
Mahogany, Honduran Mahogany, Santos Mahogany, Mountain Mahogany, Philippine Mahogany, etc.,
mainly based on the origin. It is a heartwood, usually in deep red-brown color, with occasional dark
reddish streaks.

Mahogany is used in both timber and logs forms, mainly for making furniture, cabinets, flooring, etc. The
usability and specific properties, however, depending on where the wood has grown.

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Acacia Mangium

Acacia mangium is an important multipurpose tree for the tropic lowlands. Mangium is one of the major
fast-growing species used in plantation forestry programs throughout Asia, the Pacific, and the humid
tropics. It has naturalized in Puerto Rico, Brazil, and many other areas. Due to its rapid growth and
tolerance of very poor soils, A. mangium is playing an increasingly important role in efforts to sustain a
commercial supply of tree products while reducing pressure on natural forest ecosystems.

Mangium (Acacia mangium) wood is hard, with a basic specific gravity of 0.65 to 0.69. It produces a wood
that is useful for a variety of purposes. The sapwood is cream colored, and the heartwood is ash dark
brown-yellowish or pale brown with a pinkish tinge and is not sharply demarcated from the sapwood.

Kempas

Is a rather solid type of hardwood originating from Indonesia and Malaysia that is often used for flooring.

Kempas tends to be an orangish-brown, with an overall mahogany-like appearance. Kempas has a medium
to coarse open texture. The grain is interlocked and sometimes wavy. The wood can also have streaks of
brittle tissue that can be a source of mechanical weakness.

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SOFTWOOD in the PHILIPPINES

Cedar

Cedar is a type of coniferous wood, meaning that it is classified as a softwood and its cones/needles
remain all year round. Cedar trees fall under the Cedrus genus and the Pinaceae family, which is the family
of trees that is coniferous.

Cedar wood tends to be used for its natural beauty, which means it is not typically hidden in the framing
of a construction project. With this visual appeal, cedar lends itself to be used in many applications like
fencing, decking, siding, and trim. Because of its aromatic smell and natural insect-repellent, some types
of cedar can also be used in manufacturing dressers and other clothing storage.

Apitong

Apitong is a medium size to large resinous tree growing to a height of about 40 meters. Trunk is straight,
cylindrical, branchless up to 30 meters, up to 125 centimeters in diameter. Outer bark smooth to
lenticellate when young, shedding off large flakes when mature; inner bark pinkish-brown. For posts,
beams, joists, rafters, flooring, bridge and wharf construction including piles (treated); wagon, beds,
automobile framing, framing of barges and lighters, rail-road-car construction, medium grade furniture,
telegraph and telephone poles (treated); and for other purposes for which hard and heavy timbers are
required. ENVIRONMENT SERVICES: Windbreaks and good for soil erosion control.

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Alder

Alder, a relative of birch, is almost white when freshly cut, but quickly changes with exposure to air,
becoming light brown with a yellow or reddish tinge. Heartwood is formed only in trees of advanced age
and there is no visible boundary between sap and heartwood. The wood is fairly straight-grained with a
uniform texture. Alder is a relatively soft hardwood of medium density that has low bending strength,
shock resistance, and stiffness.

Uses:
Furniture, kitchen cabinets, doors, shutters, molding, panel stock, turnings, carvings, and kitchen utensils.

Ash

Ash is a light colored, smooth-grained hardwood that grows throughout the east coast and parts of
Canada. With its typical straight grain and beige-to-light-brown hue, ash wood is a very attractive option
for fine furniture. It’s one of the most durable varieties and has an extensive history in American furniture
making. It is durable, lightweight, aesthetically pleasing, and absorbs wood stains well. Its characteristics
as a lightweight and shock-resistant wood have made it a favorite for baseball bats, tool handles, and
restaurant furniture. Today ash is making a splash in home furnishings, particularly in the mid-century
modern style.

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Gmelina

Gmelina arborea is a fast-growing tree, which grows on different localities and prefers moist fertile valleys
with 750–4500 mm rainfall. It does not thrive on ill-drained soils and remains stunted on dry, sandy or
poor soils; drought also reduces it to a shrubby form. The tree attains moderate to large heights of up to
30 m, with a girth of 1.2 to 4 m. It has a chlorophyll layer just under the outer bark, which is pale yellow
on the outside and white inside.

Pine
Pine trees are evergreen, coniferous resinous trees (or, rarely, shrubs) growing 3–80 m (10–260 ft) tall,
with most species reaching 15–45 m (50–150 ft) tall.

Pines are among the most commercially important tree species valued for their timber and wood pulp
throughout the world. In temperate and tropical regions, they are fast-growing softwoods that grow in
relatively dense stands, their acidic decaying needles inhibiting the sprouting of competing hardwoods.
Brown heartwood and sapwood white – yellow color.

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Mengkulang

Mengkulang, or Palapi as it is known in Indonesia is very similar to Niangon from Africa. We import this
species from Malaysia, and it is widely used as a substitute for Lauan, mainly for joinery.

Any of various large Malayan timber trees of the genus Heritiera (family Sterculiaceae), especially H.
simplicifolia; the wood of any of these trees, valued especially as a material for plywood.

Rosewood

Rosewood is a deep, ruddy brown to purplish-brown color, richly streaked and grained with black resinous
layers. It takes a fine polish but because of its resinous nature is difficult to work. The heartwood attains
large dimensions, but squared logs or planks are never seen because before the tree arrives at maturity,
the heartwood begins to decay, making it faulty and hollow at the center. Once much in demand by
cabinetmakers and piano makers, the wood is still used to fashion xylophone bars, but waning supplies
restrict its use.

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Taun

Taun is a wood species originated mainly from Southeast Asia tropical forest.Raw taun wood is pink to
reddish brown,sapwood is not very distinct from heart wood .Taun wood is moderately durable.As solid
wooden floor it can be for interior use only.Taun is similar in appearance to another wood species from
Southeast Asia regions -Merbau, but it is not so strong as merbau,also it weights lighter than real merbau.

Falcata

Paraserianthes falcataria (falcata) is a fast-growing tree species, grown commercially in the Philippines
particularly in Bislig or in Surigao del Sur eventually spreading to nearby provinces. Acacia
falcata, commonly known as sickle wattle and by other vernacular names including sally, is a perennial
shrub or tree native to eastern Australia, which reaches five metres in height and has cream flowers in
early winter. It gets its common and scientific name for its sickle-shaped leaves. Hardy and adaptable to
cultivation, it is used in regeneration of bushland.

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