Haematoxylum campechianum

Taxobox
name = Logwood

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image_width = 240px
regnum = Plantae
divisio = Magnoliophyta
classis = Magnoliopsida
ordo = Fabales
familia = Fabaceae
genus = "Haematoxylum"
species = "H. campechianum"
binomial = "Haematoxylum campechianum"
binomial_authority = L.

Logwood ("Haematoxylum campechianum") is a tree in the legume family that has been and to a lesser extent remains of great economic importance. It grows throughout Central America and even led to the founding of the modern nation of Belize, which grew from British logging camps of the 17th century. The tree's scientific name means "bloodwood" ("haima" being Greek for blood and "xulon" for wood). In fact, the name "logwood" is also used for many other species, such the Spiny logwood and White logwood, that are not true logwoods but really belong to the genus "Xylosma".

Uses

Logwood was used for a long time as a natural source of dye, and still remains an importance source of haematoxylin which is used in histology for staining. The bark and leaves are also used in various medical applications. In its time, Logwood was considered a versatile dye, and was widely used on textiles but also for paper.cite web|url=http://www.ischool.utexas.edu/~cochinea/pdfs/e-hammeke-04-logwood.pdf|title=Logwood Dye on Paper|last=Hammeke|first=Erin|date=2004|publisher=The University of Texas|accessdate=2008-07-05] The dye's colour depends on the mordant used as well as the pH. It is redish in an acidic environments but bluish in alkaline ones.

References

External links

* [http://waynesword.palomar.edu/ecoph4.htm Wayne's World: Logwood and Brazilwood, Trees That Spawned 2 Nations]
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