Gmelina Arborea - Utilization of The Species

Utilization of The Species

Gmelina arborea timber is reasonably strong for its weight. It is used in constructions, furniture, carriages, sports, musical instruments and artificial limbs. Once seasoned, it is a very steady timber and moderately resistant to decay and ranges from very resistant to moderately resistant to termites.

Its timber is highly esteemed for door and window panels, joinery and furniture especially for drawers, wardrobes, cupboards, kitchen and camp furniture, and musical instruments because of its lightweight, stability and durability. It is also used for bentwood articles. In boat building it is used for decking and for oars. Gmelina arborea is a popular timber for picture and slate frames, turnery articles and various types of brush backs, brush handles and toys also for handles of chisels, files, saws, screw drivers, sickles etc. The wood is also used for manufacturing tea chests and general purpose plywood, blackboards, frame core and cross bands of flushdoor shutters. In the instrument industry gambhar timber is widely employed for the manufacture of drawing boards, plane tables, instrument boxes, thermometer scales and cheaper grade metric scales. It is also used in artificial limbs, carriages and bobbins. It is an approved timber for handles of tennis rackets, frames and reinforcements of carom boards and packing cases and crates. Gamhar is used in papermaking and matchwood industry too.

Gmelina arborea leaves are considered good for cattle (crude protein – 11.9%) and are also used as a feed to eri-silkworm.

'Kumizh tree' when burnt yields the whitest possible ash;mention is made by certain 'rock art enthusiasts' that this ash is one of ingredient in the semi solid white ochre used to draw the very ancient 'cave paintings' as old as 3,000 t0 5,000 years or more; found in the dense foresrs of Tamilnadu. ref. The New Indian Express, page 2, 26.03.2012.