Guanacaste

Overview

Guanacaste (Enterolobium cyclocarpum), also called parota, is a light-to-medium brown wood with darker streaks and very large pores that give a coarse, almost fibrous texture. Its large trunks yield very wide slabs that weigh far less than most imported hardwoods. People pick it for slab tables and furniture frames.

Pros

• Easy to work with hand and machine tools; glues and finishes well.
• Very large slabs are common, and they are light for their size (Janka 470 lbf, about 440 kg/m3).
• Rated durable to very durable, per Wood Database.
• Distinctive coarse texture and darker brown streaks.
• Low shrinkage for its class (2.2% radial, 4.9% tangential).

Cons

• Tear-out is common in planing and fuzzy surfaces appear after machining, especially on quartersawn faces.
• Soft, so tabletops dent more readily than harder woods.
• Mixed insect resistance.
• Reported to cause eye and respiratory irritation.
• Retail pricing is erratic and slabs are often sold one-off.

Variants and subspecies

• Slabs and live-edge pieces: the main product; see Live-edge slabs for how to select and flatten them.
• Parota: the Mexican trade name for the same wood.
• Look-alikes: none close; for a light, coarse-grained slab alternative see Camphor laurel.

Working and finishing

Sharp knives and light cuts reduce tear-out; sand to finer grits to remove machining fuzz. It glues and finishes well. The open pores can be filled for a smooth film finish or left for a textured, natural look.

Staining and finishing colour

Stains acceptably; the natural light-to-medium brown with darker streaks is the usual finish choice under oil or clear lacquer. Large pores will hold stain and darken, so test first.

Sustainability and handling

CITES and IUCN: not listed in the CITES Appendices or on the IUCN Red List (Wood Database; APHIS CITES Timber Manual, checked 2026-09-30). FSC availability is not verified here. The US Lacey Act makes it unlawful to trade wood taken or exported in breach of the source country's laws (fws.gov/law/lacey-act), so buy from dealers who can name the country and species. If a piece will be exported to or sold in the EU, Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 (the EUDR) requires due-diligence evidence that wood products are deforestation-free and legally produced; check its current application date with your buyer.

Ethical call: a good lower-risk choice for slab furniture. Health: reported to cause eye and respiratory irritation. The US National Cancer Institute reports strong, consistent associations between wood-dust exposure and cancers of the nasal cavity and sinuses, so use extraction and a respirator when sanding.

Popular projects

Dining and coffee table slabs, benches, furniture frames, millwork, boat parts and turned objects.

Buying notes

Mostly sold as slabs from specialty dealers, sometimes as boards. No per-board-foot retail price was found; the price range in the front matter is an estimate. Ask about drying: large slabs can check if dried too fast.