Wood Species Guide
Chechen
Metopium brownei
Also called: Black Poisonwood, Chechem, Chechem Negro, Caribbean Rosewood
About the name “Chechen”
Caribbean rosewood is a trade nickname, not a true rosewood, and is also used for torchwood (Amyris balsamifera).
What Chechen looks like
Wildly variable: amber, orange, red and chocolate brown bands with dark streaking. It often looks like a rosewood, which is where the Caribbean rosewood name comes from.
Grain and texture
Fine to medium texture, often interlocked or irregular grain, with good luster.
Working Chechen: planing, cutting and gluing
Hard and dense, with interlocked grain that tears out on the planer. Sharp tools and light passes help, and sanding gives the best surface. It glues well with a clean, fresh surface.
Finishing Chechen: oil, film finishes and epoxy
Finishes to a deep, glossy look with oil or film finishes. Takes epoxy well; a seal coat helps on the more irregular-grained pieces.
Durability, stability and Florida humidity
Very durable against decay and moderately resistant to insects. Reasonably stable once fully dry. In Florida, acclimate before milling and finish both faces of tabletops.
Shop notes from our Fort Myers shop
Chechen is a lot of color and figure for the money, and it shows up as boards, flooring and the occasional slab. Floridians may know its relative, the native poisonwood (Metopium toxiferum) of South Florida hammocks and the Keys, which has the same nasty sap. The dried, finished wood is safe; the danger is in the living tree. We do not stock chechen, but ask us and we can often source it.
Common uses for Chechen
Flooring, furniture, cabinetry, turned objects, musical instruments and decorative accents.
Sustainability and CITES status
Not listed in the CITES Appendices or evaluated as threatened on the IUCN Red List.
Safety and toxicity
- Skin irritation
- Sensitizer (allergy builds with exposure)
- Eye irritation
Chechen is a poisonwood in the poison ivy family. Sap in the bark and fresh wood carries urushiol and can cause a severe rash, while the dried wood is still a known irritant and sensitizer. Never handle green wood or bark bare-handed.
- In the shop
- Full precautions: extraction, respirator, gloves, long sleeves; no bare-hand contact with bark
- Food contact
- Not recommended for cutting boards, bowls and utensils
General information, not medical advice. See a doctor if you have a reaction.
The sap of the living tree causes severe poison-ivy-like rashes, so never handle fresh-cut green wood or bark bare-handed. Dried wood dust can still irritate eyes and skin and is a sensitizer. Wear gloves and a respirator when sanding.
Chechen in stock now
Ask us. We can often source it.
We don't have Chechen listed online right now, but new slabs and lumber come in all the time and not everything makes it to the website. Tell us what you're building and we'll check our racks and suppliers.
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