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Taxonomy

The species was first described in 1799 by Hipólito Ruiz López and José Antonio Pavón Jiménez, as Cerdana alliodora. In 1841, it was transferred to the genus Cordia by Lorenz Oken. (Cerdana is treated as a synonym of Cordia.)⁵

Among the synonyms of Cordia alliodora is Solanum mucronatum.⁶ Solanum is placed in a different family from Cordia (Solanaceae rather than Boraginaceae).⁷ Solanum mucronatum was described by Otto Eugen Schulz in 1909. In his description, Schulz expressed doubt that Solanum was the right genus.⁸

Uses

Cordia alliodora is one of several Cordia trees called bocote in Spanish and its wood, which has very little figure, is usually called freijo or jennywood along with that of Cordia goeldiana. The wood is used for boat decking, furniture, cabinetry, guitar/bass building by luthiers, and sometimes substitutes for mahogany or teak.

Environmental aspects

Outside of its indigenous range, Cordia alliodora has been identified as a problematic invasive species.⁹ For example, a timber-focused planting program of the species in Vanuatu during the mid-1970s has over time proved disruptive to native ecosystems and communities. The species has been described as a severe environmental nuisance, as it has overtaken natural forests by multiplying at a faster rate than being harvested, and has become susceptible to outbreaks of a form of root rot known as Phellinus noxius.¹⁰

References

1. "Cordia alliodora". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 10 March 2010. https://npgsweb.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxonomydetail.aspx?id=11470 ↩

2. Mabberley, D.J. (1997). The plant book: A portable dictionary of the vascular plants. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-41421-0. 978-0-521-41421-0 ↩

3. "Cordia alliodora". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 10 March 2010. https://npgsweb.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxonomydetail.aspx?id=11470 ↩

4. "Cordia alliodora". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 10 March 2010. https://npgsweb.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxonomydetail.aspx?id=11470 ↩

5. "Cordia alliodora (Ruiz & Pav.) Oken". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 29 December 2023. https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/113943-1 ↩

6. "Cordia alliodora (Ruiz & Pav.) Oken". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 29 December 2023. https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/113943-1 ↩

7. "Solanum L." Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 29 December 2023. https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/30000630-2 ↩

8. Schulz, Otto Eugen (1909). "Solanacearum genera nonnulla". In Urban, Ignaz (ed.). Symbolae Antillanae, seu, Fundamenta florae Indiae Occidentalis. Vol. 6. pp. 140–192. Retrieved 29 December 2023. "An haec planta re vera ad Solanum pertiniat?" (Does this plant really belong to Solanum?) p. 191 https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/23515161 ↩

9. Edward, Ezekiel; Munishi, Pantaleo K. T.; Hulme, Philip E. (2009). "Relative Roles of Disturbance and Propagule Pressure on the Invasion of Humid Tropical Forest byCordia alliodora(Boraginaceae) in Tanzania". Biotropica. 41 (2): 171–178. Bibcode:2009Biotr..41..171E. doi:10.1111/j.1744-7429.2008.00474.x. ISSN 0006-3606. https://doi.org/10.1111%2Fj.1744-7429.2008.00474.x ↩

10. Country report on the forestry invasive species situation in Vanuatu. Proceedings of the Asia-Pacific Forest Invasive Species Conference. Kunming, Yunnan Province, China 17–23 August 2003. http://www.fao.org/docrep/008/ae944e/ae944e0a.htm http://www.fao.org/docrep/008/ae944e/ae944e0a.htm ↩