Eucryphia cordifolia

Eucryphia cordifolia, the ulmo, is a species of tree in the family Cunoniaceae. It is found in Chile and Argentina. It is threatened by logging and habitat loss. The natural habitat is along the Andes Range from 38 to 43°S, and up to 700 meters (2300 ft) above sea level. It is a very elegant tree with a thick trunk and wide crown and can become over 12 m (40 ft) high.[2] It blooms in February and March, depending on latitude and altitude. The fruit is a capsule about 1.5 cm (0.6 in) length.

Eucryphia cordifolia
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Oxalidales
Family: Cunoniaceae
Genus: Eucryphia
Species:
E. cordifolia
Binomial name
Eucryphia cordifolia
Synonyms[1]
  • Eucryphia glutinosa (Poepp. & Endl.) Baill.
  • Eucryphia nymansensis J.Bausch
  • Eucryphia patagonica Speg.
  • Eucryphia pinnatifolia Gay
  • Fagus glutinosa Poepp. & Endl.

Cultivation and uses

Its flowers contain a highly appreciated aromatic nectar, harvested by introduced European bees and commercialized as "ulmo honey" (miel de Ulmo). The wood is light brown to brown, heavy, moderately firm, rather hard and quite resistant to decay. It is used locally for construction and very extensively as firewood.

It also grows well in Scotland and has been planted in the North Pacific Coast of the United States.

Chemical composition

Eucryphin, a chromone rhamnoside, can be isolated from the bark of E. cordifolia.[3]

References
  1. The Plant List: A Working List of All Plant Species, retrieved 21 August 2016
  2. Encyclopædia Britannica. Eucryphia cordifolia
  3. Eucryphin, a new chromone rhamnoside from the bark of Eucryphia cordifolia. R. Tschesche, S. Delhvi, S. Sepulveda and E. Breitmaier, Phytochemistry, Volume 18, Issue 5, 1979, pages 867-869, doi:10.1016/0031-9422(79)80032-1
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.