Globalworks provides intense adventure and service holidays for teenagers. We have collaborated with Globalworks since 2003, and we always have a great time, as well as getting a lot of work done! Twenty-two members, between 14 and 17 years of age, from the Squaw Valley Preparatory School, California, came to stay at Las Casas de la Selva with Scott Page, Director of Globalworks, Puerto Rico. Over a few days a huge amount of trailblazing was carried out, some cement work, and everyone partook in the salsa dance class with Yara Solis.. Thanks to Norman Greenhawk, who was the crew leader out in the forest. Thank you SVP staff Ms. Monica and Shana Boyd. Thanks to Hunter Banovich and Ms. Monica for their photos! Hope to see you all back here someday!
Mahoe,Hibiscus elatus All dimensions are in inches and all slabs are slightly larger than stated. All pieces have been planed on both sides. Ends are Anchor-sealed. Shipping is not included, send an email for a quote.
1) Your shipping address. 2) Your shipping preference for a quote: USPS Priority (4-6 days) or USPS Retail Ground (14-18 days) .
We accept secure payments through Paypal.
Mahoe,Hibiscus elatus, is a large forest tree endemic to Jamaica, Cuba, and now naturalized in Puerto Rico. The straight stems of mature specimens can rise to a height of 80 feet, with trunk diameters of 12 to 18 inches, on favorable sites attaining diameters of 36 inches. Its relatively fast growth makes mahoe a highly suitable candidate for sustainable forestry management. The leaves are long-stalked heart-shaped, flowers are large and funnel shaped, usually red, but occasionally yellow or orange. Mahoe is a moderately hard wood with a specific gravity of 0.58-0.62. The heartwood is very durable, highly resistant to attack by decay fungus, and resistant to subterranean termites. The fairly straight grain is richly variegated with shades of steely blues, metal grays, deep purples and pinks, olive greens and yellows, creams and browns, along with an elegant chatoyance in the wood. The narrow sapwood is pale white and subtly flecked, creating an attractive contrast with the heartwood. From reports and our own experience, the timber is generally easy to saw, plane, route, mould, mortise, carve, glue, nail, screw, sand, and turn, with a natural gloss in the wood when finished. It responds very well to both hand and machine tools in all woodworking operations. The wood has a musical quality and has been traditionally used in the making of cuatros, (puertorican guitars). Fine boxes, furnitures, inlay works, floors, details, turned pieces, exquisite jewelleries, sculptures, and ancient board games, have been, and demand to be transformed from the Mahoe. Architects, furniture-makers, designers, artists & wood lovers will find a charm in working with this wood.
Mahoe,Hibiscus elatus. All dimensions are in inches and all slabs are slightly larger than stated. All pieces have been planed on both sides. Ends are Anchor-sealed. Shipping is not included, send an email for a quote.
Please include in your email to 3t@eyeontherainforest. org 1) Your shipping address. 2) Your shipping preference for a quote: USPS Priority (4-6 days) or USPS Retail Ground (14-18 days) .
We accept secure payments through Paypal.
Mahoe,Hibiscus elatus, is a large forest tree endemic to Jamaica, Cuba, and now naturalized in Puerto Rico. The straight stems of mature specimens can rise to a height of 80 feet, with trunk diameters of 12 to 18 inches, on favorable sites attaining diameters of 36 inches. Its relatively fast growth makes mahoe a highly suitable candidate for sustainable forestry management. The leaves are long-stalked heart-shaped, flowers are large and funnel shaped, usually red, but occasionally yellow or orange. Mahoe is a moderately hard wood with a specific gravity of 0.58-0.62. The heartwood is very durable, highly resistant to attack by decay fungus, and resistant to subterranean termites. The fairly straight grain is richly variegated with shades of steely blues, metal grays, deep purples and pinks, olive greens and yellows, creams and browns, along with an elegant chatoyance in the wood. The narrow sapwood is pale white and subtly flecked, creating an attractive contrast with the heartwood. From reports and our own experience, the timber is generally easy to saw, plane, route, mould, mortise, carve, glue, nail, screw, sand, and turn, with a natural gloss in the wood when finished. It responds very well to both hand and machine tools in all woodworking operations. The wood has a musical quality and has been traditionally used in the making of cuatros, (puertorican guitars). Fine boxes, furnitures, inlay works, floors, details, turned pieces, exquisite jewelleries, sculptures, and ancient board games, have been, and demand to be transformed from the Mahoe. Architects, furniture-makers, designers, artists & wood lovers will find a charm in working with this wood.
Q: Why is Mahoe sometimes called Blue Mahoe when it varies through so many colors? A: Because of its bluey green shades it was called Blue Mahoe to distinguish it from its relative, the seaside mahoe (Hibiscus tiliaceus L.) Above: images of Mahoe leaves, flowers, seeds, and trees.
All dimensions are in inches and all slabs are slightly larger than stated. All pieces have been planed on both sides. Shipping is not included. We accept secure payments through Paypal.
Please include in your email to 3t@eyeontherainforest. org 1) Your shipping address. 2) Your shipping preference for a quote: Priority (8-12 days) or Standard Mail (14-18 days) .
Mahoe is the timber tree currently being harvested from 26 – 30yr old plantations at Las Casas de la Selva. Mahoe or Hibiscus elatus, (also known as “Blue Mahoe” for the characteristic coloration of its wood after milling), is a tree native to Jamaica and Cuba. A volunteer species, characteristic of open disturbed habitats and also found, due to its shade tolerance, as an understory tree in secondary forests, mahoe grows to 25 m tall and upwards of 100 cm DBH (KIMBER, 1970). It was recognized as a potentially important species for plantation and forest enrichment after a survey by Jamaican foresters (LONG, 1963 cited in KIMBER, 1970). It is an excellent wood with a rich variety of colors and attractive grain, but surprisingly, very little mahoe is currently being produced anywhere else. The first plantings in Puerto Rico were in the 1940s and it has been also been introduced to other Caribbean islands and Hawaii for evaluation. It has become naturalized in Mexico, Peru, Brazil, southern Florida and the West Indies (CHUDNOFF, 1982 cited in WEAVER, FRANCIS, n.d.)
BUY OUR MAHOE WOOD
Mahoe lumber (wood from the mill that requires no further processing) is $20.00 per board foot. Mahoe turning and carving blanks are $26.00 per board foot. Wood for sale may include some sapwood, and all ends are anchor-sealed. Mahoe can vary greatly in color from tree to tree, the blue tone does not tend to endure for many years. The wood transforms over time to shades of browns, purples, greys, and bluey-greens.
These 13 and 14 year olds from Montessori schools in PR and US, braved the torrential rains of the Patillas mountain to join us at Las Casas de la Selva for a few days together, helping 3t with re-potting nearly 200 tree seedlings, and they also learnt some woodworking skills with Ricardo and Alex. Andrés was chef, and provided us with yummy foods and a barbecue. Thank you all.
Instituto Nueva Escuela, Puerto Rico, Staff: L-R: Juan Jose Rodriguez Fernos, Alberto Viera Vargas, and Elsa Román.
This great bunch of seniors from Sandy Spring Friends School in Washington DC, spent a few days working on major pruning around the homestead and laying the foundation for a new floor. We were super impressed with the sheer hard work carried out, and this time we had great sunny weather as well. Thanks to school staff, Leah and Barry, and Globalworks facilitators, Scott & Arie. Magha made great food throughout, whilst 3t, Andres, Ricardo, and Alex led the work crews. BIG THANKS to all.
These intrepid students from Fountain Valley High School, Colorado Springs spent 5 days of hard labor on projects ranging from nursery work and trail-blazing with 3t, to roadwork with Andres, and woodworking with Ricardo and Alex. This is the third year of FVS students volunteering at Las Casas de la Selva. We are honored to have worked alongside you all. Welcome back anytime! Thanks to Deb and Brett, awesome staff who accompanied the students. Also huge thanks to Magha Garcia for the delicious food. Check back in the coming weeks for more pix.
This was our 2016 Appalachian State University Team of hardworking volunteers on their Alternative Service Experience during Spring Break. We all worked on a multitude of tasks at Las Casas de la Selva, including organization of the sheds and workshop, deconstruction of an old roof, and ditch-digging for a new floor. AS Staff member, Mona helped in the library with cleaning abd book maintenance and care. We are thrilled every year to receive students from App State and every year just gets better. Abbie (her second year at Las Casas de la Selva) and Lucas – hats off to you for great team leadership. We thank you all for your labors, along with the fine company. See you soon again. Thanks also to Lizbeth Velez for participation with the groups, helping in all aspects of management.
Great team from Pepperdine University, Malibu, CA. This team built the two extra showers, that we need as some of our groups in the year are over 15 people. The year’s compost pile was emptied and a new one started. Thank you Carsen and Kris for leading the team and thank you all for such tremendous company and hard work. This team lived in a mountain cloud for the most part of their time here. It rained a lot!
We are really thankful that individuals decide to come and volunteer their talents, time, and labor at Las Casas de la Selva. The project is a perfect place to immerse yourself into a new biome: the rainforest of Puerto Rico!
Special thanks to Tim Dehm, who stayed for three months and looked after Las Casas de la Selva for the month of October, in 2015, whilst 3t and Andres attended the annual Synergist Conference, in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
