Cumaru
Cumaru, also called brazilian vanilla, is a native Amazon plant. This fruit is highly marketed, internationally known as fava beans or tonka beans and smelling very pleasant what is useful in cosmetic industry.
Scientic name: Dipteryx odorata
Popular name: Cumaru; Cumaru-ferro; cumarurana; cumaru-verdadeiro; cumaru-amarelo; cumaru-de-folha-grande; muimapagé; champagne; cumaru-do-amazonas; cumaruzeiro; cumbaru; cumaru-de-cheiro.
Annually produces an abundant amount of viable seeds, widely disseminated by the fauna.
The tree has an erect and cylindrical trunk, 50-70 cm in diameter which the trunk is not very thick, rough and peeling with irregular plates. The leaves alternate, alate-pinnate, imparipinnate compound. And also alternate in number 7-9, short petiolulates, coriaceous, glabrous on both sides and shiny on the upper side, 10-20 cm length and 4-8 cm width. Inflorescences terminal rusty-pubescent panicles with fragrant flowers. The fruit is an oval drupaceous vegetable (pod), fibrous and spongy, with a pubescent surface which still contains a single seed which is very heavy (density 1.09g/cm³), tough to cut, texture between fine and medium, interlocked grain, high mechanical strengh and high resistant to termite and fungi attack.
The nuts (seeds) are edible and much sought-after by rodents.
Picking fruits on the ground under the mother plant right after their spontaneous fall can be used to sow like seeds, but in general the germination rate is low. The real seed removal is a very laborious operation. However, there is a appreciable improvement of germination rate compensation, for example 1 kg of fruits equals to 83 units and 245 true seeds.
Every forest resident knows the medicinal properties. For centuries Cumaru tree has been used in preparations that ensures the cure of different diseases in an efficient way. From the bark to the fruits, leaves and all parts of Cumaru (Dipteryx odorata) are valuable and very appreciated.
The medication process of bark of the tree is recommended for respiratory ailments, syrups and infusions. The seed is a natural analgesic for earache treatment using an alcohol based preparation. The leaves of Camuru are powerful adjuvant for cardiac arrhythmias treatment. The oil extracted from the seed is also a powerful anti-inflammatory and widely used to rheumatism cases.
Great companies ensure these properties are valids and they promote planting the trees in huge areas in the Amazon. This planting contributes to reforestation and at the same time encourages rural workers settlement in the region. The cumaru seed is known as fava-tonka, and has been used in perfumery since 19th century. Coumarin is the active ingredient responsible for the perfume and the fragrance is a fusion of vanilla and almond aromas.
All benefits listed are salutary for both forest and communities, inputs extraction that keeps the tree standing and provides income to the inhabits of forest. However, one of the characteristics that haunts the maintenance of this harmony is the high quality of this tree wood which is very tough to the attack of termites and fungi which causes rotting. The luxury furniture industry is a major consumer of this raw material, which threatening the continuity of its existence in natural environments.
