Author: Linnaeus
Morphological description (see also description of Genus Haematoxylum )
Tree up to c. 15 m high.
Leaves with one spine in the axil, 3-5-jugate, petiole with rachis up to c. 10 cm. Leaflets subsessile, opposite, obovate, 2-3 by 1-2.5 cm, emarginate or subtruncate at apex, cuneate at base, glabrous; nerves and veins fine.
Inflorescences up to 6(-12) cm long, rather densely flowered; pedicels 4-6 mm (campech Haemat infl lf 256071 ).
Flowers fragrant (campech Haematox infl 256072 ). Calyx lobes yellow or purple-tinged, ovate, 3-4 mm long. Petals bright yellow, obovate, 5-6 mm. Stamens almost the same length as petals. Ovary and style pubescent.
Pods 2-6 by 0.8-1.2 cm (campechianum Haemat pods 386537 ;campech Haematox pod/sd 256073 ).
Distribution
Tropical America, now widely cultivated in the Tropics.
Common names
Logwood (English), Bois de campeche (French).
Uses
The heartwood and roots are the source of blue, violet, and purple dyes used for ink, and for dyeing woollen and silk goods. The heartwood is also the source of a red dye (haematoxylin) which is used as a stain in histological work. See Burkill (1938) 1142; Heyne (1950: 749) and Seegler (1991: 78).