Tectona | |
---|---|
Tectona grandis in new leaves in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Asterids |
Order: | Lamiales |
Family: | Lamiaceae |
Genus: |
Tectona L.f. |
Species | |
Tectona is a genus of tropical hardwood trees in the mint family, Lamiaceae. [1] [2] [3] The three species are often collectively called teak.
Tectona is native to south and southeast Asia, mainly India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Indonesia and Thailand, and are commonly found as a component of monsoon forest vegetation. They are large trees, growing to 30–40 m (90–120 ft.) tall, deciduous in the dry season. Tectona grandis is an economically important species which is the source of most commercial teak wood products. [4]
Teak belongs to the family Lamiaceae (in older classifications in Verbenaceae). Sometimes it is included in the subfamily Prostantheroideae. [5] There are three species of Tectona:
The genus Tectona is a conserved name against the earlier homotypic synonym Theka Adans. [2] The genus was originally described by Carl Linnaeus the Younger in 1782. [6]
The biggest and oldest teak is in Uttaradit, Thailand. It is more than 1,500 years old. Its height is 47 metres.[ clarification needed] [7]