Tabebuia serratifolia

Invasive species Disclaimer

In view of the fact that some tree species are invasive, the world Agroforestry Center (ICRAF) has put in place a policy document on Invasive Alien Species, currently under draft available at Here.

For more information on this subject, please refer to
100 of the World's worst Invasive and Alien Species.




Species Index    A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Multiple Criteria Search


Abelmoschus moschatus
Acacia aneura
Acacia angustissima
Acacia aulacocarpa
Acacia auriculiformis
Acacia catechu
Acacia cincinnata
Acacia crassicarpa
Acacia elatior
Acacia erioloba
Acacia etbaica
Acacia ferruginea
Acacia glauca
Acacia holosericea
Acacia karroo*
Acacia koa
Acacia laeta
Acacia lahai
Acacia leptocarpa
Acacia leucophloea
Acacia mangium
Acacia mearnsii*
Acacia melanoxylon
Acacia mellifera
Acacia nilotica subsp nilotica
Acacia pachycarpa
Acacia pennatula
Acacia polyacantha ssp. polyacantha
Acacia saligna
Acacia senegal
Acacia seyal
Acacia sieberiana
Acacia tortilis
Acacia xanthophloea
Acrocarpus fraxinifolius
Adansonia digitata
Adenanthera pavonina
Aegle marmelos
Afzelia africana
Afzelia quanzensis
Agathis macrophylla
Agathis philippinensis
Ailanthus altissima
Ailanthus excelsa
Ailanthus triphysa
Albizia adianthifolia
Albizia amara
Albizia anthelmintica
Albizia chinensis
Albizia coriaria
Albizia ferruginea
Albizia gummifera
Albizia julibrissin
Albizia lebbeck
Albizia odoratissima
Albizia procera
Albizia saman
Albizia versicolor
Albizia zygia
Aleurites moluccana
Allanblackia floribunda
Allanblackia stuhlmannii
Allanblackia ulugurensis
Alnus acuminata
Alnus cordata
Alnus japonica
Alnus nepalensis
Alnus rubra
Alphitonia zizyphoides
Alstonia boonei
Alstonia congensis
Alstonia scholaris
Altingia excelsa
Anacardium occidentale
Andira inermis
Annona cherimola
Annona muricata
Annona reticulata
Annona senegalensis
Annona squamosa
Anogeissus latifolia
Anthocephalus cadamba
Antiaris toxicaria
Antidesma bunius
Araucaria bidwillii
Araucaria cunninghamii
Arbutus unedo
Areca catechu
Arenga pinnata
Argania spinosa
Artemisia annua
Artocarpus altilis
Artocarpus camansi
Artocarpus heterophyllus
Artocarpus integer
Artocarpus lakoocha
Artocarpus mariannensis
Asimina triloba
Ateleia herbert-smithii
Aucomea klaineana
Averrhoa bilimbi
Averrhoa carambola
Azadirachta excelsa
Azadirachta indica
Azanza garckeana
Related Links
Brilliant yellow flowers
© Ellis RP
The petals are frilly and crinkled. The calyx is brown and hairy.
© Ellis RP

Local names:
Dutch (groenhart), English (yellow poui,trumpet flower tree,noib wood,May-flower,greenheart,bethabara,bastard lignum-vitae,arewood), Portuguese (pau d’Arco,ipe tobaco,ipe)

Tabebuia serratifolia is a large, deciduous tree, up to 37 m high and 3 m in trunk diameter, that will square 30 cm of heartwood. Trunk usually straight and frequently buttressed.

Flowers profuse, clear yellow, borne at intervals during the dry season.

Fruit a linear dehiscent capsule containing many winged seeds.

The generic name is after its Brazilian local name. The specific epithet means serrate leaved.

Ecology

The species is widely distributed in tropical South America from Bolivia and Brazil to Colombia and Trinidad, particularly the Guyana and Trinidad, where it is widely distributed in the north of the island in climax evergreen forest. It forms pure stands in some areas but prefers the sides and tops of ridges to swampy ground.

Native range
Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, French Guiana, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Martinique, Mexico, Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Surinam, Trinidad and Tobago, United States of America, Venezuela, Virgin Islands (US)

Seeds do not retain viability for long periods in storage. Storage in seed flasks at 10 deg. C have maintained seed viability the longest.

The species is widely distributed in tropical South America from Bolivia and Brazil to Colombia and Trinidad, particularly the Guyana and Trinidad, where it is widely distributed in the north of the island in climax evergreen forest. It forms pure stands in some areas but prefers the sides and tops of ridges to swampy ground.

Germinating capacity is maintained for a very short time.

Timber: Heartwood of freshly cut wood is yellowish-green and the sapwood, which is 1.2-8.8 cm wide, is cream coloured. The dry heartwood is light to dark olive-brown, often with lighter or darker streaks. The dry sapwood is white or greyish-white. The grain is straight to very irregular. T. serratifolia dries rapidly during air seasoning in spite of its high density, and the wood is rated easy to season. Timber very hard, heavy, strong and very durable; used for sleepers, house posts, bridge building. The wood is reputed to be highly resistant to decay.