When I was a kid my Grandfather was always growing mahogany trees from seed. He was a skilled carpenter and boatbuilder and got a kick out of the fact that he could grow mahogany in his yard down in South Florida. We children found the tree fascinating. It had these incredible rock-hard seed pods that would occasionally explode and release a burst of good-sized helicopter seeds that looked like something designed by Leonardo da Vinci. Grandpa never harvested any of the wood from the tree to the best of my knowledge, but it was right there by the side of the carport where he did his carpentry. During my recent visit to South Florida I saw a nice big mahogany growing in a suburban front yard and captured it on film:
Unfortunately, mahogany is a truly tropical tree and South Florida is the very top of its native range – otherwise, I’d be growing mahogany up here just for fun. All you need is some seeds and some time.
You can have greener thumbs by this weekend!
9 comments
Will you be growing mahogany at your new place? what a cool tree!
I hope so. I would also love to trying growing ebony, though I don’t think I’ll live the 200 years until harvest time.
I picked up what I thought was a mahogany seed last fall and put it in a dish under some decorative balls and pine cones on my table. In the last week and a half it has sprouted and the sprout is now almost two feet long. It turns toward the east window in the morning and rotates toward the west in the late afternoon. No dirt. No water. Very weird!!? Have you ever heard of such a strange growth?
Please send me some good pictures when you get a chance – that is amazing. My email is david @ the survival gardener. com. (Take the spaces out.)
Coming your way
Hi! I just ran across this article, probably to late to post here but I figured I’d tell you we have an almost 100 yr old huge mahogany tree in our front yard. I was so excited because, those helicopter wings inside the hard shell have a little nut inside, that is really tasty! But the best part is it’s a superfood for diabetics. in other countries they power or pill form em specifically as a supplement for that. It really lowers blood sugar. I think you should try growing it there, once it’s established not much hurts it! ANyway thought you might like to know that. THanks for the great posts and hard work:)
Peace,
Niki
I didn’t know that – thank you.
I have a mature mahogany tree on some vacant property I own in Central Florida (Zone 9). It was given to me by my Mother back in approximately 1998ish. It is offspring from the front yard shade tree in the home I grew up in down in Fort Lauderdale, FL. My folks were moving and she dug up seedling treasures she found growing in the flower beds. Anyway, I have never done anything to this tree except put it in the hole and watered for the first couple of weeks after planting. Never pruned, all natural growth habit! Beautiful specimen & shade tree and it grows in the sandy soil we have here on the Lake Wales Ridge Ecosystem – the same soil the citrus groves grow in. The only water it gets is from Mother Nature and this is a very hot, Scrub habitat!
Anyway, I searched for saplings & seeds and found both. I would like to have at least one in the ground at my home in the same area. I guess they would be grandchildren to the parent tree. So I have a couple of seeds in pots and one 14″ sapling that I am potting this morning until it gets a little bigger before putting it in the ground. I have the perfect spot for it and I can’t wait until that day comes. I have the fondest memories of playing underneath that beautiful shade tree in South Florida and the tree that my family and neighbors sat under for visits, during the hot Florida summers. It certainly kept us cool! I know for sure mahogany trees grow in this area, since I have one that is approximately 35 feet tall now and it flourishes!
this tree seeds are an alternative medicine for diabete though Moringa oleifera is the best so far for this. Both are tropical trees. Send some seeds of Moringa oleifera oversea to help a friend to bring down the blood sugar at safe level due to her medicine side effect.
Thanks for sharing.
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