White Cinnamon
Scientific name: Canella winterana
Overview
White Cinnamon is a small to medium-sized evergreen tree native to the Caribbean, the West Indies, southern Florida, the Bahamas, and portions of the tropical Americas. It belongs to the Canellaceae family and is notable for its strongly aromatic bark and foliage. Despite its common name, White Cinnamon is not a true cinnamon of the Cinnamomum genus.
The wood is generally pale yellowish to light brown, with a fine to medium texture and generally straight grain. White Cinnamon is much better known historically for its aromatic bark than as a commercial timber species. Its bark has been used locally as a spice and aromatic material, while the wood has occasionally served for small utility objects, carving, turning, and other local applications. Its botanical distinctiveness and Caribbean distribution make authenticated wood particularly interesting for collectors.
Quick Facts
- Common Name: White Cinnamon
- Alternate Common Name(s): Wild Cinnamon, Canella
- Scientific Name: Canella winterana
- Region: Caribbean & West Indies Hardwoods
- Tree Size: Approximately 20–50 ft (6–15 m) tall, with trunks generally less than 1.5 ft (0.45 m) in diameter
- Average Dried Weight: Reliable species-specific value not widely documented
- Janka Hardness: Reliable species-specific value not widely documented
- Grain: Generally straight
- Texture: Fine to medium
Identification Characteristics
White Cinnamon generally produces pale yellowish, tan, or light brown wood with relatively subtle coloration. Sapwood and heartwood may show considerably less contrast than many darker tropical hardwoods.
Grain is generally straight, while texture ranges from fine to medium. The living tree is particularly distinctive because its bark and other tissues contain aromatic compounds that produce a spicy fragrance when crushed or damaged.
Key identification traits include:
- Pale yellowish to light brown wood
- Limited heartwood and sapwood contrast
- Generally straight grain
- Fine to medium texture
- Relatively uniform appearance
- Subdued natural luster
- Strongly aromatic bark
Working Properties
White Cinnamon is not sufficiently important as a commercial timber for extensive standardized machining data to be available. Its relatively fine and generally straight grain should make sound material suitable for small-scale woodworking with sharp tools.
Because trunks are typically modest in size, the species is better suited to smaller objects than applications requiring large clear boards.
- Machines reasonably with sharp tools
- Suitable for small carvings
- Can be shaped readily
- Sands to a smooth surface
- Suitable for turning
- Fine grain can produce clean detail
- Large clear boards are uncommon
Safety Note
White Cinnamon contains aromatic natural compounds, particularly within its bark and foliage. Detailed information regarding reactions specifically to its wood dust is limited, but dust and plant material may cause irritation in sensitive individuals.
Appropriate dust collection, eye protection, gloves when handling fresh plant material, and respiratory protection are recommended where exposure is significant.
Common Uses
White Cinnamon has historically been valued more for its aromatic bark than for lumber. When wood is available, its relatively small tree size and fine texture make it most appropriate for localized and specialty applications, including:
- Carving
- Turned objects
- Craft items
- Small boxes
- Decorative objects
- Small utility items
- Traditional uses
- Specialty woodworking
- Educational specimens
- Wood collections
Sustainability & Notes
White Cinnamon is an ecologically and historically interesting component of Caribbean and West Indian vegetation. The species occurs in tropical and subtropical forests, coastal environments, and other suitable habitats throughout portions of its natural range.
Its aromatic bark has historically attracted considerably more attention than its wood. The name “White Cinnamon” reflects its use as an aromatic substitute rather than a close botanical relationship to true cinnamon.
For woodworking and collecting purposes, material obtained through legitimate pruning, storm damage, land management, or salvage is preferable to harvesting trees specifically for their relatively limited timber.
Comparative Notes & Related Species
Bois d’Inde – Another aromatic Caribbean tree whose leaves and other plant material have been traditionally valued for their distinctive spicy fragrance.
Satinwood – A Caribbean hardwood known for its fine texture, yellow coloration, natural luster, and historical use in decorative furniture and veneer.
Lignum Vitae – A dramatically heavier and harder Caribbean wood that provides an excellent contrast with the lighter and less commercially important White Cinnamon.
Related Guides
How to Identify Wood by End Grain Patterns – Learn how pores, rays, growth structures, and other end-grain features provide valuable identification clues.
How to Store Exotic Wood Samples – Learn how to protect uncommon specimens from excessive moisture fluctuations, sunlight, contamination, and physical damage.
Labeling and Cataloging Wood Samples – Explore methods for documenting scientific names, geographic origins, acquisition information, and provenance for collector specimens.
Compare Wood Properties
See how this species ranks in density and hardness using our Wood Density & Janka Hardness Chart. You can also explore Hardest Woods, Softest Woods, and Most Dense Woods for quick comparisons.
Collector Notes
White Cinnamon is particularly interesting for collectors because its significance extends beyond the appearance of the wood itself. The species represents an aromatic Caribbean tree with a long history of regional use and illustrates how common names can suggest relationships that do not exist botanically.
A documented sample can be displayed alongside other aromatic Caribbean species such as Bois d’Inde, as well as more traditional regional cabinet woods such as Satinwood.
Collectors should retain the scientific name Canella winterana with specimens because “wild cinnamon” and similar common names are applied to multiple unrelated plants.
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Do you have lumber, wood samples, tree photographs, woodworking projects, furniture, carvings, turnings, musical instruments, or other items made from this species?
Exotic Woods of the World welcomes photographs from woodworkers, collectors, sawyers, researchers, and wood enthusiasts around the world. Selected submissions may be featured on this page and throughout our website to help document and showcase real-world examples of this species.
When submitting photos, please include the common name, scientific name (if known), a brief description, and any information you would like us to share with the image.
Wood Sample Collection
This species is part of an ongoing effort to document and preserve wood samples from around the world.
Learn more about contributing to the collection:
Resources
Authoritative botanical and forestry references used in compiling information about this species include:
• USDA Forest Service – Wood Handbook: Wood as an Engineering Material
https://www.fpl.fs.usda.gov/products/publications/
• The Wood Database – Global reference for wood identification, physical properties, and woodworking characteristics
https://www.wood-database.com/
• Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew – Plants of the World Online – Botanical taxonomy and species distribution database
https://powo.science.kew.org/
• International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN Red List) – Global conservation status assessments
https://www.iucnredlist.org/
• Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) – International trade regulations for protected plant species
https://cites.org/
Additional forestry publications, academic research papers, and regional timber studies may also be referenced where available.
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Availability & Where to Buy
Exotic hardwood availability can vary significantly depending on region, sustainability regulations, and supplier inventory.
As this archive grows, recommended suppliers and specialty wood retailers will be listed here to help woodworkers locate responsibly sourced material.
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