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Swietenia mahagoni
West Indian Mahogany
Florida native
A rare tree of the southern tip of Florida including the keys and north only as far as Lee County.
Growing up to 15m (50 ft.) tall with a buttressed base and large spreading branches. The alternate leaves are pinnately compound, 10-19cm (4 to 7-1/2 in.) long, without a terminal leaflet. Typically there are two to four pairs of leaflets, but sometimes more. Leaflets are ovate to lanceolate, 2-6cm (3/4 to 2-1/3 in.) long and 1-2.5cm (4/10 to 1 in.) wide, with the two sides of the base coming in at different angles and the leaflet often distinctly curving back towards the rachis. The tiny flowers are only 7mm (~1/4 in.) across with five white or yellow petals. The ten stamens are fused together to form an upright tube surrounding the pistil. The fruit is an egg-shaped woody capsule, 6-13 cm (2-1/3 to 5 in.) long and 3-7cm (1-3/32 to 2-3/4 in.) wide. This fruit splits along five seams to release numerous winged seeds.
Swietenia mahagoni is a member of the Meliaceae - Mahogany family.
Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants (Institute for Systemic Botany) profile for this species
USDA Plant Profile for this species
Date record last modified: Feb 13, 2020
