Mango Wood

Special Care Note: Like all tropical woods, mango does best in humid or semi-humid environments.  Our mango wood is kiln-dried to prevent cracking, but even so, in very dry areas such as the desert Southwest or northern New England in the winter, we recommend using a humidifer.  We also recommend occasionally polishing with a natural oil furniture polish, such as natural lemon oil.  With proper care, mango wood will last for generations.

 

Properties: Mango is moderately hard and dense, slightly harder than ash or black cherry, and it is highly water-resistant.

 

Environmental Issues: More than 20 million metric tons of mango fruit are grown every year, and when the fast-growing hardwood trees stop producing fruit after a few years, they are cut and replanted, the essence of sustainability.  The wood from the barren trees also provides farmers with an extra source of income.  Durable hardwood products such as furniture from sustainably-managed forests and plantations can have a net positive effect on global climate change.  As trees grow, they absorb carbon from the atmosphere and soil, storing most of it as woody tissue.  When the trees are harvested, this carbon is stored permanently.  Unless the item is left to rot and decompose (or is burned), this carbon will never be released in the atmosphere.  Sustainably harvested forests replant new trees where the old ones were removed, thus perpetuating the carbon-absorption cycle.