{"id":139,"date":"2021-11-08T17:13:22","date_gmt":"2021-11-08T16:13:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.karibiodiv.net\/en\/?post_type=post_flore&p=139"},"modified":"2025-09-19T21:51:54","modified_gmt":"2025-09-19T19:51:54","slug":"gaiac","status":"publish","type":"post_flore","link":"https:\/\/www.karibiodiv.net\/en\/flore-caribeenne\/gaiac\/","title":{"rendered":"Lignum vitae or Guaiac tree"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Description<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Guaiac is a very hard brown wood, called “Holy Wood” or “Wood of Life.” It is a small tree with thin branches and opposite paripinnate leaves. It has two or three pairs of oblique, leathery leaflets, measuring 1 to 5 cm. It also has fasciculated flowers with five blue petals, 12 to 15 mm long. Its fruit measures 2 cm and is leathery and orange.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A very dense wood with a fine, almost oily texture, Guaiac wood quickly became highly prized by cabinetmakers. It has also been used medicinally for over five centuries, hence its name, the tree of life (lignum vitae). In decoction, it was used to treat tuberculosis and syphilis. The sawdust was burned to treat venereal diseases, and an essential oil called guaiacol was extracted from it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Habitat<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

This tree is found in the tropical regions of the Americas, particularly in the Antilles and Venezuela, and is endangered. It is found more specifically in dry forests on volcanic soil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Threat factor <\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Overexploited for its wood and medicine, the guaiac tree has become rare. Its distribution is very limited and the number of trees is extremely small. It is now protected in the west-indies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"Ga\u00efac<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Ga\u00efac<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Ga\u00efac<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Le Ga\u00efac est un bois brun tr\u00e8s dur, appel\u00e9 \u00ab Bois saint \u00bb ou \u00ab Bois de vie \u00bb. C’est un petit arbre \u00e0 branches fines disposant de feuilles oppos\u00e9es paripenn\u00e9es.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":140,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","categorie_flore":[76],"class_list":["post-139","post_flore","type-post_flore","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","categorie_flore-foret-seche-sur-sol-volcanique"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.karibiodiv.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_flore\/139","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.karibiodiv.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_flore"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.karibiodiv.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post_flore"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.karibiodiv.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/140"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.karibiodiv.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=139"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"categorie_flore","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.karibiodiv.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categorie_flore?post=139"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}