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Pericopsis elata
Also called Afromosia, Afrormosia, Satinwood, Yellow Satinwood, Golden Afrormosia, Kokrodua
African teak is a very large, deciduous tree of moist semi-deciduous forests in West and Central Africa, grown mainly for its valuable timber. It is not a common garden or houseplant, and it is slow to mature and threatened in the wild.
Pericopsis elata is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is known by the common names African teak, afrormosia, kokrodua and assamela.
The species is native to moist, semi-deciduous forests in Cameroon, Republic of the Congo, DRC, Ivory Coast, Ghana, and Nigeria. Up until the mid 20th century, the tree was commonly found in its native range. However, after its wood was introduced to world markets in 1948, its range quickly diminished. It can no longer be found in the Ivory Coast and only small pockets remain in other countries besides the DRC where it is still threatened.
The tree produces hardwood timber of high commercial value due to its texture, strength, density and durability. It is used in the manufacture of boats, veneer, and furniture.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Pericopsis elata by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
