Copaiba is the tree proposed for the seventeenth station of the park. Its binomial name is Copaifera langsdorffii. It belongs to the Fabaceae family, the same family as the already mentioned Cabreuva, Sibipiruna, Inga do Brejo and Brazilwood.
Its name comes from the Tupi language (kupa’iwa) and it is popularly known as copaibeira or pau-de-oleo (oilwood). It is a tree native to the Brazilian biomes of the Atlantic Forest, Amazon and Cerrado. It also occurs in Argentina, Bolivia and Paraguay.
It grows from 5 to 35 meters (16 to 114 feet) in height, and its trunk is cylindrical and curved. Its foliage is initially light pink in color, turning red in the spring.
Its wood, also red, is highly resistant and used in carpentry and civil construction.
Copaiba oil is used in folk medicine in the Amazon as an expectorant and antiseptic, and also in the treatment of skin diseases such as eczema and dermatitis. Filtered, its oil can be used as biodiesel (automobile fuel).
Purple Glory is the tree proposed for the sixteenth station of the park. Its binomial name is Tibouchina granulosa. It belongs to the Melastomataceae family.
Its name in portuguese (Quaresmeira, i.e. “of Lent”) comes from the fact that it blooms from January to April, coinciding with the Christian Lent period. In addition, its flowers are purple, a color associated with the Passion of Christ. Therefore this reference also in its english name.
The Purple Glory Tree is a pioneer species. It occurs mainly in the Atlantic Forest of the brazilian State of Bahia and southeastern Brazil, and also in gallery forests of the cerrado biome.
It is a medium-sized tree and can reach 8 to 12 meters (26 to 40 feet) in height. The diameter of its trunk can measure between 30 and 40 cm (12 to 16 inches). Its lifespan is around 70 years.
Its fruits, hard and dry, are brown and cup shaped. They measure around 1 cm (0.4 inch) in diameter.
The tree leaves are elliptical in shape and have a hairy texture, which means they feel somewhat rough when touched.
Its wood, which is of low quality and quite light, is used to make rafters, posts, crates and toys.
Because it grows quickly, it provides shade for native species to develop and is recommended for the recovery of deforested areas.
Common in urban areas of the southeast of Brazil, the Purple Glory Tree forms a dense canopy, which gives it an unparalleled beauty.
Eleven years has passed since the first text from Natura Futura was published and five years have passed since the Park Project was presented, back in April 2019.
The Project keeps going, with “Patience” being its 16th station. The trees planted in this time frame are being cared for and new plants are planned to be planted in the future.
Natura Futura is alive and well, working on the field. We propose you join this initiative by telling online your experience with trees. Use this space to share your experience with the trees you have planted and your effort to take care of them !
Guanandi is the proposed tree for the fifteenth station of the park. Its binomial name is Calophyllum brasiliense Cambess. It belongs to the Calophyllaceae family.
The word “Guanandi” comes from the Tupi language and means “fruit with sticky gum”. It is native to the Amazon, Cerrado and Atlantic Forest biomes of Brazil. The latex in its bark is used to produce landim balm, which has medicinal uses, such as healing (i.e., helping the growth of a new tissue that forms over a wound).
It is a tree that grows up to 30 meters (98 feet), with a trunk that can reach 60 cm (23 inches) in diameter. Its wood, considered hardwood, was widely used in the construction of ships during the Brazilian imperial period.
Its flowers are white and bloom from September to November. Its leaves have a characteristic light green surface and are intersected by a charming dark green central line.
Café de Bugre is the proposed tree for the fourteenth station of the park. Its scientific name is Cordia salicifolia. It belongs to the Boraginaceae family.
Cordia salicifolia is also known as Cordia digynia or Cordia coffeoides and has the following popular names: porangaba bugrinho (little bugre) café-do-mato (wild coffee) cafezinho-do-mato (small, wild coffee) café-de-bugre (Brazilian indians’ coffee) chá-de-frade (friar’s tea) claraíba louro do mato (wild laurel)
The name Porangaba comes from the Guarani language and means “fruit with reddish pulp”. Its fruits are reminiscent of the fruits of the coffee tree, and bugre is an old European reference to the indigenous people of Brazil. Hence the name Café de Bugre.
It occurs in the Atlantic Forest, from the northeast to the south of Brazil, and in Paraguay. Its height is between 8 and 12 meters (26 to 39 feet), even reaching 20 meters (65 feet) in forests. The diameter of its trunk reaches between 30 and 40 cm (12 to 16 inches).
Its wood is soft and compact, but not very durable. Its flowers are melliferous and its fruits are red, with a taste similar to persimmon. Its leaves, which measure between 8 and 14 cm (3 to 5 inches), have a very expressive and elegant shape.
Sibipiruna is the proposed tree for the thirteenth station of the park. Its scientific name is Caesalpinia pluviosa. It belongs to the Fabaceae family (the same family as the Ingá-do-brejo tree).
Its name comes from the Tupi language and means “black sibipira”. Native to the Atlantic Forest, its foliage is similar to the Brazilwood. Its height ranges from 6 to 18 meters (20 to 60 feet), and can reach up to 28 meters (92 feet). The diameter of its trunk reaches between 30 and 40 cm (12 to 16 inches).
Its leaves fall off in winter, almost completely, and reappear in spring. Its flowers are yellow and appear from September to November. Its fruits are flat and contain about 3 to 5 seeds. It is a long-lived tree, and can reach 100 years of age.
Sibipiruna is a pioneer species (like the Timbó tree), and is one of the first species to appear in a degraded area. It is large, has exuberant flowering, provides cool shade and grows quickly. These are traits that make it in tune with the concept of Initiative !
Cabreuva is the proposed tree for the twelveth station of the park. Its binomial name is Myrocarpus frondosus. It belongs to the Fabaceae Family.
Cabreuva has various popular names: cabriuva cabriuva-parda (dark “cabriuva”) cabrue cabureiba oleo-cabureiba (oil “cabureiba”) oleo-pardo (dark oil) pau-balsamo (balsam wood)
The word “Cabreuva” comes from the Tupi word “cabure iwa”, which means cabure tree. Cabreuva is a tree native to the Atlantic Forest, found in the northeast, southeast and south of Brazil. Its wood is reddish and considered noble. Its sawdust is used in perfumery and its bark has medicinal uses.
It is an aromatic and honey-bearing tree that grows up to 30 meters, whose trunk can reach 80 cm in diameter.
Aroeira is the proposed tree for the eleventh station of the park. Its scientific name is Schinus terebinthifolia and it belongs to the Anacardiaceae family.
Native to the brazilian atlantic forest, this tree is also known in the USA. Actually it has been introduced to Hawaii, Texas, California, Arizona, Nevada, Louisiana and Florida. Therefore there is more available information about it in english.
These are the most common popular names in english: aroeira Brazilian peppertree rose pepper broadleaved pepper tree wilelaiki (or wililaiki) Christmas berry tree Florida holly
While these are the popular names in Brazil: aguaraíba aroeira aroeira-branca (white aroeira) aroeira-da-praia (beach aroeira) aroeira-do-brejo (swamp aroeira) aroeira-do-campo (field aroeira) aroeira-do-paraná (paraná aroeira, while Paraná is a brazilian state) aroeira-do-sertão (backwoods aroeira) aroeira-mansa (meek aroeira) aroeira-negra (black aroeira) aroeira-pimenteira (pepper aroeira) aroeira-precoce (precocious aroeira) aroeira-vermelha (red aroeira) aroerinha-do-iguapé (iguapé aroeira) bálsamo (balm) cabuí cambuí coração-de-bugre (Indian heart) fruto-de-raposa (fox fruit) fruto-de-sabiá (sabiá fruit, while sabiá is a bird)
The aroeira tree reaches a height of 16 to 32 feet, and its trunk reaches a diameter of 11,8 to 23,6 inches. Its flowers are small and whitish, and its fruits, also small, are bright red.
Its wood is heavy and soft, and is used in posts and also as firewood and charcoal. Its bark is used in leather tanning and fishing nets. Its fruits are used in cooking as a spice.
When pruned, it can release multiple branches simultaneously, which gives it an unique ornamental beauty.
Brazilwood is the proposed tree for the tenth station of the park. Its scientific name is Paubrasilia echinata and it belongs to the Fabaceae family.
Brazilwood would have this name due to the red, ember-like color of its wood. However, there are other theories about the origin of the word Brazil. One of them points to verzino, a Tuscan word for a wood from which paint was extracted. There are also other names for the “Brazil wood”, in its place of origin: Pau-de-tinta (ink wood) Pau-pernambuco (pernambuco wood, while Pernambuco is a brazilian state) Pau-rosado (rosy wood)
In the Tupi language, the tree has the following names: Arabutan Ibirapitanga Ibirapiranga Ibirapitá Orabutan In Tupi, ïbi’rá means wood while pi’tãga denotes its red color.
The tree reaches 15 meters in height and is famous for the quality of its wood and the resin used in the manufacture of fabrics. Its trunk is grayish in color and covered in large “spines”, technically called aculei. Its leaves are small and oblong in shape.
Much is said about Brazilwood, when studying the arrival of the first Europeans to the coast of South America. The name of the immense territory conquered by the Portuguese became Brazil, due to the abundance of this species in the Atlantic Forest. At that time began the trade of Brazilwood, a phenomenon so intense that it generated a dangerous process of decimation of the species, leaving sequels to this day. The Brazilwood is currently considered a vulnerable species, in danger of extinction.
In this year of 2022, we celebrate Brazil’s Independence Bicentennial along with the 100th anniversary of the 1922 Modern Art Week. Being the starting point of modernist aesthetics in the country, it bore fruits such as the “Pau-Brasil Manifesto” and the book “Pau-Brasil” (“Brazilwood”) by Oswald de Andrade . These idealized, in a natural and primitivist tone, autonomous values for the young nation, which had just completed one hundred years. With “Poesia Pau-Brasil” (“Brazilwood Poetry”) Andrade aimed for a pioneering “poetry for export” (a first production that was actually original to the country, and not a production derived from foreign models).
And you, do you know Brazilwood? The tree that gave a nation its name carries with it history, tradition and also the awareness of recovery and preservation of brazilian native forests. And here’s the question: have you ever seen a Brazilwood forest?
Jequitiba (written “Jequitibá” and pronounced “shee-kee-tee-bawe”) is the proposed tree for the ninth station of the park.
There are many species of Jequitiba, among them: Pink Jequitiba aka Jequitibá-rosa (Cariniana legalis) White Jequitiba aka Jequitibá-branco (Cariniana estrellensis) Red Jequitiba aka Jequitibá-vermelho (Cariniana rubra) “Carnation” Jequitiba aka Jequitibá-cravinho (Cariniana parvifolia) Jequitiba aka Jequitibá (Cariniana ianeirensis)
Our text is about the Pink Jequitiba, which binomial name is Carinianna legalis. It belongs to the Lecythidaceae family.
Jequitiba is a word of the tupi indian language (yekïti’bá), which probably means “giant of the forest”.
It has other popular names, as follows: congolo-de-porco (pig’s nematode) estopa (cotton waste) pau-carga (load wood) pau-caixão (coffin wood) sapucaia-de-apito ((whistle sapucaia (note: sapucaia is a tree))
Being able to reach up to 164 ft height and 22 ft diameter, the Pink Jequitiba deserves the byname giant of the forest. Its bark has medicinal applications and its seeds are sought as food by monkeys. It also has a light weight wood, which can be used in furniture. Shiny but slightly wrinkled leaves complete the profile of this charming tree, gigantic in all its attributes.
Saguaraji is the tree we have proposed for the the eighth station of the park. It belongs to the Rhamnaceae family, and its scientific name (binomial name) is Colubrina glandulosa. It is popularly known as: sabiá-da-mata (sabiá bird-of-the-forest) sobrasil sagoraji sobraji subraji saguari
Present at the Atlantic Forest, from the brazilian State of Ceará until Rio Grande do Sul State, Saguaraji reaches up to 20 meters (65 feet). Its fruits ripen from December to February, and its flowers are very small. The Saguaraji wood is considered to be a resistant one.
The Saguaraji leaves have brilliant texture and round shapes. On their surfaces, grooves create internal elongated areas, which provide them with a charming beauty.
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