Para rubber tree
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2008-06-28T08:18:27Z
JDspeeder1
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/* Description */
:''This article is about the main commercial source of latex. For the common ornamental plant, see [[Ficus elastica]].''
{{Taxobox
| name = Rubber Tree
| image = Koeh-071.jpg
| image_width = 200px
| image_caption = ''Hevea brasiliensis''
| regnum = [[Plantae]]
| divisio = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Malpighiales]]
| familia = [[Euphorbiaceae]]
| subfamilia = [[Crotonoideae]]
| tribus = [[Micrandreae]]
| subtribus = [[Heveinae]]
| genus = ''[[Hevea]]''
| species = '''''H. brasiliensis'''''
| binomial = ''Hevea brasiliensis''
| binomial_authority = [[Johannes Müller Argoviensis|Müll.Arg.]]
}}
The '''Pará rubber tree''' (''Hevea brasiliensis''), often simply called '''rubber tree''', is a [[tree]] belonging to the [[family (biology)|family]] [[Euphorbiaceae]] and the most economically important member of the genus ''Hevea''. It is of major economic importance because its sap-like extract (known as [[latex]]) can be collected and is the primary source of natural [[rubber]].
==Description==
The tree can reach a height of over 30m (98.4 feet). The white or yellow latex occurs in latex vessels in the [[bark]], mostly outside the [[phloem]]. These vessels spiral up the tree in a right-handed [[spiral]] which forms an [[angle]] of about 30 degrees with the horizontal.
==Harvest==
Once the trees are 5-6 years old, the harvest can begin: incisions are made orthogonal to the latex vessels, just deep enough to tap the vessels without harming the tree's growth, and the sap is collected in small buckets. This process is known as [[rubber tapping]]. Older trees yield more latex, but they stop producing after 26-30 years.
==History==
The Pará rubber tree initially grew only in the [[Amazon Rainforest]]. Increasing demand and the discovery of the [[vulcanization]] procedure in 1839 led to a boom in that region, enriching the cities of [[Belém]] and [[Manaus]]. The name of the tree derives from [[Pará]], the second largest Brazilian state, that contains Belém as capital, mainly city and tech-financial centre.
There had been an attempt made, in 1873, to grow rubber outside [[Brazil]]. After some effort, twelve seedlings were germinated at the [[Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew]]. These were sent to [[India]] for cultivation, but died. A second attempt was then made, some 70,000 seeds being sent to Kew in 1875. About 4% of these germinated, and in 1876 about 2000 seedlings were sent, in [[Wardian case]]s, to [[Ceylon]], and 22 sent to the Botanic Gardens in [[Singapore]]. Once established outside its native country, rubber was extensively propagated in the British colonies. Rubber trees were brought to the botanical gardens at [[Bogor|Buitenzorg]], Java in 1883.<ref name="winchester">{{cite book | last = Winchester | first = Simon | title = Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded, August 27, 1883 |pages=223-224 | publisher = HarperCollins | year = 2003 | id = ISBN 0-06-621285-5 }}</ref> By 1898, a rubber plantation had been established in [[British Malaya|Malaya]], and today most rubber tree plantations are in [[Southeast Asia]] and some also in tropical [[Africa]]. Efforts to cultivate the tree in its native South America were unsatisfactory.
==Uses==
{{Main|Rubberwood}}
The wood from this tree, referred to as parawood or rubberwood, is used in the manufacture of high-end furniture. It is valued for its dense grain, minimal shrinkage, attractive colour and acceptance of different finishes. It is also prized as an "environmentally friendly" wood, as it makes use of trees that have been cut down at the end of their latex-producing cycle.
==Synonyms==
The genus ''Hevea'' is also known as:
*'''''Caoutchoua''''' <small>[[J.F.Gmel.]]</small>
*'''''Micrandra''''' <small> [[Benn.]] & [[Robert Brown (botanist)|R.Br.]]</small>
*'''''Siphonanthus''''' <small>[[Schreb.]] ex [[Henri Ernest Baillon|Baill.]]</small>
*'''''Siphonia''''' <small>[[D.Richard]] ex [[Schreb.]]</small>
==See also==
* ''[[Castilla elastica]]'' - the principal source of latex rubber among the pre-Columbian [[Mesoamerica|MesoAmerican]] peoples
*[[List of plants of Amazon Rainforest vegetation of Brazil]]
{{Commons|Hevea brasiliensis}}
== Gallery ==
<gallery>
Image:Rubber_tree_plantation.JPG|Rubber tree plantation in [[Phuket]], [[Thailand]]
image:Rubber_tree_leaves.JPG|Leaves of a Pará rubber tree
image:Latex_dripping.JPG|Latex being collected from an incised rubber tree
Image:Rubber_tree.jpg|Mindanao, Philippines, plantation worker
Image:Hevea semillas2.jpg|Rubber tree seeds
</gallery>
== References ==
{{reflist}}
* [http://www.greenlivingtips.com/articles/142/1/Sustainable-Rubberwood.html Sustainable Rubberwood]
==Further references==
Zhang, J., Huss, V.A.R., Sun, X., Chang, K. and Pan, D. 2008. Morphology and phylogenetic position of a trebouxiophycean green algae (Chlorophyta) growing on th rubber tree, ''Hevea brasiliensis'', with the description of a new genus and species. ''Eur. J. Phycol.'' '''43(2)''': 185 - 193.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rubber Tree, Para}}
[[Category:Crops originating from the Americas]]
[[Category:Euphorbiaceae]]
[[Category:Trees of Brazil]]
[[Category:Trees of the Amazon]]
[[ca:Siringa (arbre)]]
[[cs:Kaučukovník brazilský]]
[[de:Kautschukbaum]]
[[es:Hevea brasilensis]]
[[eo:Kaŭĉukarbo]]
[[fr:Hévéa]]
[[hi:रबड़]]
[[hsb:Brazilski kawčukowc]]
[[it:Hevea brasiliensis]]
[[lt:Brazilinė hevėja]]
[[ms:Pokok Getah]]
[[nl:Braziliaanse rubberboom]]
[[ja:パラゴムノキ]]
[[no:Ekte gummitre]]
[[pl:Kauczukowiec]]
[[pt:Seringueira]]
[[ro:Arbore de cauciuc]]
[[qu:K'awchu sach'a]]
[[ru:Гевея бразильская]]
[[simple:Para rubber tree]]
[[sk:Kaučukovník]]
[[fi:Kumipuu]]
[[vi:Cao su (cây)]]
[[tr:Hevea brasiliensis]]
[[zh:橡膠樹]]