This tall tropical hardwood is the Cigar Box Cedar, Cedrela odorata. It is also known as Spanish Cedar or West Indian Cedar. Despite the name, it is not a true cedar. It belongs to the mahogany family, Meliaceae, and is related to mahogany, neem and several other valuable tropical timber trees.

The species is native across a broad area of the tropical Americas, including the Caribbean, Central America and much of northern South America. It usually grows as a large, upright tree with a straight trunk and an open crown.

Its leaves are compound, made up of several pairs of smooth-edged leaflets arranged along a central stalk. The tree may shed much of its foliage during a pronounced dry season and produce fresh new leaves when rainfall returns.

The flowers are small, pale green or cream-colored and appear in loose branching clusters. They are not especially showy, but they may have a noticeable fragrance. After flowering, the tree develops upright, woody capsules.

As those capsules mature, they dry, turn brown and split into several sections. Inside are many flat, winged seeds. The wings allow the seeds to spin or glide away from the parent tree on the wind.

The name odorata refers to the distinctive scent of the wood. When freshly cut, it has a warm, spicy fragrance that people have long valued. The wood is lightweight, workable and naturally resistant to many insects.

It became especially famous for lining cigar boxes and humidors. The aromatic wood helps regulate moisture, protects against insects and contributes a subtle fragrance without overpowering the cigars. That use gave rise to the common name Cigar Box Cedar.

The timber has also been used for furniture, cabinets, doors, musical instruments and decorative woodwork. Unfortunately, its commercial value led to extensive harvesting throughout its natural range.

Today, Cedrela odorata and other members of the genus Cedrela are regulated under CITES Appendix II because of concerns about unsustainable international trade.

This tree therefore tells two stories. One is about its graceful form, winged seeds and beautifully scented wood. The other is about the need to protect valuable tropical trees from being harvested faster than natural forests can replace them.

When standing beside it, we are looking not only at an attractive Caribbean tree, but at one of the most historically important timber species of the tropical Americas.