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REFORESTATION WITH FUSTIC (Chlorophora Tinctoria)
Conserving the Treasure of Nature

  
Have you thought about planting trees as and investment for you, your children, and future generations? Have you thought that trees can be used to protect nature, to generate oxygen, to rescue species in extinction and to avoid erosion? Have you considered trees as a wood and colorants source? Do you know that by planting trees you assure a rent for the future? There are a lot of other reasons to start planting trees…the next is a description of Fustic, a valuable native specie of the Ecuadorian coast.  

     

 

  

FACTS

  

Fustic  is a hard wood tree that has excellent qualities. At the moment it is considered as a wood of conditioned use, due to the fact that it does not exist in abundance and it does not regenerate easily. 

If we compare Fustic wood with Teak wood that is a well known hard wood, we can determine that Fustic  is better making it one of the best woods in the international market. Fustic weights 42% more than Teak; it is 138% harder  and 47% stronger than Teak. In addition, Fustic is resistant to termites.

 		 


    

 
 
USES OF FUSTIC  
 

In addition to its use as wood, Fustic has other important uses. 

Fustic  is used as a natural colorant for wood, cotton, and textiles in Europe and North America. It has a shinny yellow color. In combination with other products like henna and indigo, it produces different alternatives of natural colorants. Fustic is considered as one of the most valuable yellow colorants. 

In addition, Fustic has curative properties. It is used to heal colds and for tooth pain. It has diuretic effects. There are some studies to obtain morina from Fustic; this will help to prevent heart diseases. (Biochem Pharmacol 47: 1099-103, 1994)
 
 

 ECONOMICAL BENEFITS

  
 

     

    

  


Even tough Fustic has many benefits, its uses has been limited to the lumber sector. There are not reforestation projects, causing danger of extinction of this specimen. 

It is recommended to integrate the tree with understory crops.  Fustic can provide shade for papaya, tea, yuca, chili, marjoram, plantain, cocoa, guaba, tamarinde, pineapple, and others. A distance of 8X8 square meters should be used (156 trees/ha). These understory crops help to cover costs for prunning and they generate an income during the growth period of the trees.    Planting Fustic is a totally profitable investment for the future and if sustainable ways of management the crop are used, there will be a lot of income sources. 

The plantation maintenance cost is higher during the first 3 years, when it is important to clean the weed frequently. The following years the weeding has to be done just one or two times a year, while prunning is necessary, according to the branches growth, at leat 3 times a year.  

Due to the limitations of plantation of Fustic, the tree value raises daily. Nowadays, in the local market the cubic meter is commercialized between $300 and $500 USD. In 20 years, the value of each cubic meter will exceed the $1,000.00 USD. Calculating a yield of 156 trees by hectare, a person can harvest 156 m3 in 20 years or USD 156.000,00 by hectare.

La Perla, a native forest preservation farm located at 48 Km of the road Santo Domingo-Esmeraldas, keeps very old and beatiful samples of Fustic, in a natural jungle. 
 		 
 

    

  
 

TECHNICAL DATA 

  


Scientific name: Chlorophora tinctoria

Common name: Fustic, mora amarilla, sota, fustete, palo amarillo, and madera de Cuba

Hardness rank: 1 A

Altitude: 20-30 metres

Diameter: up to 40 inches

Description: Straight and cylindrical trunk.
Extended superficial roots of approximately 1 m of diameter, with red yellowish colored spots. 
White-greenish flowers and soft green fruits. 

Distribution: The Fustic is distributed among America, from Mexico through Central America to Brazil. It grows in tropical semi-arid and semi-humid zones. It grows in altitudes of 0 to 500 metres above sea level. In Ecuador, we can find Fustic in the  Ríos province and from Quevedo to Esmeraldas.  		 
 

 

 

  

BIOLCOM AND FUSTIC
 
Biolcom has developed a project of reforestation with Fustic in the Ecuadorian Coast, in the province Los Ríos (Quevedo area). This is a good option for local people’s economy, whose actual income comes just from native wood and traditional products, and it is also an excellent way to start to protect the tropical forest. 

Biolcom produces and sells Fustic plants for  communities or people who are interested in starting with this great plantation. 

We should remember that by protecting Fustic trees we contribute to the environment. We are helping to preserve the tropical forest and its local and global ecological functions that benefits not only the present population but the future generations.