Is mahogany OK?

NextSteps

A few years ago mahogany was something you had to avoid because it came from unsustainable forestry practices. Is this still the case, or is it now environmentally as sound (or unsound) as buying any other timber?

magicbastarder

given that (afaik) mahogany trees are not fast growing, i can't imagine that any mahogany being sold now is being harvested from sustainable plantations, unless there were planted decades ago.

Do-more

You should get more info from the Forestry stewardship council www.fsc.org

I seem to remember seeing something on the TV a few years back, saying that true mahogany is in fact extinct and what is sold now as "mahogany" is in fact different species of wood which appear similar to mahogany. I'm open to correction on that though!

AFAIK most of the furniture sold in this country as mahogany is sourced from Indonesia, given that the most serious environmental problem in Indonesia is deforestation and much of this is down to logging, it's probably fair to assume that mahogany is still not environmentally sound.

Yoda

Pine is lovely. If you need it dark, stain it. :-)

Pine can last too. My longcase clock is in pine and it was made in 1790.

Sonnenblumen

UB wrote:

A few years ago mahogany was something you had to avoid because it came from unsustainable forestry practices. Is this still the case, or is it now environmentally as sound (or unsound) as buying any other timber?

Really no justification for buying any mahogany products. There are plenty of alternatives from cheap and cheerful Pine to Beech/Birch at the higher end. Besides who would want dark furniture anyways - a Bishop?

AFAIK - new mahogany furniture is practically extint in the more developed (and let's agree sophisticated) European markets

NextSteps

Sonnenblumen wrote:

AFAIK - new mahogany furniture is practically extint in the more developed (and let's agree sophisticated) European markets

The mahogany in question is for windows, and it's a German company. The wood is certified as coming from a sustainable source. I just wondered if that could be the case.

Oldtree

Swietenia mahogani (mahogany) is considered superior to the mahoganies, is fast growing but has not been much replanted when cut throughout its native region. It is doubtful that the mahoganies come from a managed, much less sustainable source. One method around this, if it must be mahogany, is to recycle an old mahogany product.