Swartzia grandifolia

Swartzia grandifolia is an evergreen tree in the pea family, Fabaceae. Its names include big leafed Swartzia and Coracao-de-Negro. Its native range stretches from southeastern Colombia across northern South America. It also grows in northern Brazil, Venezuela, and the Guianas. This is a rainforest species from the wet tropics. Sources describe trees harvested from the wild for timber.

Garden references give a height and spread of 49 feet (15 metres). Other accounts report trees reaching 59 feet (18 metres) tall. Its growth rate is moderate. The trunk is straight and round in cross-section. It can measure about 1.3–2 feet (0.4–0.6 metres) across. The supplied sources give no details of bark or leaf shape. They also lack descriptions of its flowers and fruit. No flowering season is given.

This tree needs an open site rather than shade. It prefers moist soil that drains well. It can grow in sand, loam, or clay. Its listed soil range runs from mildly acid to mildly alkaline. PFAF places it in USDA zones 10–12. Bacteria form nodules on its roots and draw nitrogen from the air. The tree uses some of this nitrogen for growth. Nearby plants may also gain some of it. The sources list seed as a means of propagation.

Its main recorded use is wood, rather than food or medicine. People harvest the timber for local use and export. The dark brown heartwood has fine, paler streaks. A pale yellow band of sapwood surrounds it. The grain can run straight or interlock slightly. The wood is heavy, hard, strong, and elastic. Uses include fine furniture, cabinets, musical instruments, and carved work. It also serves for floors, wall panels, veneer, and turned objects.

The timber resists fungi, termites, and borers of dry wood. These traits concern the wood, not the health of living trees. It dries slowly and can split during drying. Once dry, it may still change shape in use. Its hardness wears down tools, and gluing gives poor results. Nails and screws need holes drilled first. Small amounts of heartwood in each log limit its use. Neither source records edible parts or medicinal uses. That lack of recorded use does not establish safety for people or pets.