Escallonia resinosa is an evergreen shrub or tree native to the Andean forests of Peru, Bolivia and southern Ecuador from 2600 to 4200 meters above sea level.[1] A component of high Andean forests, it is regarded as an important source of raw materials for the Andean peoples.[2][3]
| Escallonia resinosa | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Escalloniales |
| Family: | Escalloniaceae |
| Genus: | Escallonia |
| Species: | E. resinosa
|
| Binomial name | |
| Escallonia resinosa | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Escallonia cuneifolia (Ruiz & Pav.) Schult. | |
Description edit
Escallonia resinosa grows as a shrub or tree from 2 to 10 m in height.[1][3] The trunk has an irregular shape and is often twisted, with a reddish papery bark.[3] Leaves are simple and spirally arranged, often clustered at the end of the branchlets, oblanceolate, 2–3.5 cm long, 0.5–0.7 cm wide, with a finely dentate margin.[3] Flowers are white, small (ca. 1 cm long), and borne in racemes or panicles.[3]
Distribution and habitat edit
Escallonia resinosa is found in the Andes, from southern Ecuador to Peru and Bolivia, between 2600 and 4200 m of elevation. It is found in seasonally dry montane forests of mountain slopes, often growing in association with trees of genera Polylepis and Buddleja.[2]
Uses edit
Escallonia resinosa is a source of firewood and wood of good quality throughout its range.[3] This tree species furnishes a hard wood for tools and is often used to manufacture chaquitacllas (a tool used for soil plowing) by the indigenous peoples of the Andes since ancient times.[3] The wood was also probably used by the Incas to make a type of ceremonial vases called kero.[4][5] Leaves are used as a source of a beige color dye applied to cotton and wool.[6]
References edit
- ^ a b "Tropicos.org". Missouri Botanical Garden.
- ^ a b Gade, Daniel (1999). Nature and Culture in the Andes. University of Wisconsin Press. p. 43.
- ^ a b c d e f g Reynel, Carlos; Marcelo, Jose Luis (2009). Árboles de los Ecosistemas Forestales Andinos (in Spanish). Lima: ECOBONA. pp. 64–69.
- ^ Carreras, Raquel; Escalera, Andrés (1998). "Identificación de la madera de las vasijas de libación inca (keros) pertenecientes a la colección del Museo de América" (PDF). Anales. Museo de América (in Spanish) (6): 217–222. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
- ^ Falcón, Víctor (2011). "Aproximación a los queros incaicos de la Colonia". Arqueología del Perú (in Spanish). Retrieved 9 September 2015.
- ^ Antúnez de Mayolo, Kay (1989). "Peruvian natural dye plants". Economic Botany. 43 (2): 181–191. doi:10.1007/BF02859858.