Mocano
Madeiran name for two trees, Visnea mocanera and Pittosporum coriaceum, both rare in the wild; the entry compares their leaves, distribution and wood.
Two species are known by this name in Madeira: Visnea mocanera, of the family Ternstroemiaceae, and Pittosporum coriaceum, of the family Pittosporaceae. The first is a shrub or small tree, with leaves that are hairy while young, chiefly on the margins and the midrib of the underside; the second is always a tree, with leaves devoid of hairs at every age. The latter species is almost extinct in the mountains of Madeira, but it is cultivated on the quintas of Monte (‘hill’) and Camacha; the former can be found on the rocks between Ribeira da Janela (‘window stream’) and Ribeira do Inferno (‘hell’s stream’), though it is quite rare. The wood of Visnea mocanera is dull in colour, sometimes tending slightly towards red, and very heavy and hard; that of Pittosporum coriaceum is light and yellowish or greyish.
In this article
Place
Places mentioned · 04
- Camacha
Santa Cruz. Pittosporum coriaceum is cultivated in its quintas.
Camacha is an upland parish above Caniço in Santa Cruz municipality, founded in 1676 with its seat in the São Lourenço chapel. The Elucidário covers its church, role in the 1828 Miguelist invasion, quintas, levadas, the Poiso shelter house, its Pentecost pilgrimage, women's padded skirts, its plants and gardens, and its famous wickerwork industry started by Hinton.
- Monte
Funchal. Pittosporum coriaceum is cultivated in its quintas.
Parish of Nossa Senhora do Monte above Funchal, at about 600 m, where leafing occurs later than in Funchal. It contains the localities of Jardim Botânico, Igreja and Marmeleiros and the Quinta de Sant'Ana. The Elucidário notes its many plants, such as acacias and Sonchus fruticosus.
- Ribeira da Janela
Porto Moniz. Visnea mocanera grows on rocks between it and the Ribeira do Inferno.
Ribeira da Janela is a parish on Madeira's north-west coast in the municipality of Porto Moniz. It is named after the island's longest and most abundant stream, which rises on the Paul da Serra and feeds the Rabaçal levadas, and after a window-like islet near its mouth. Its uplands include Fanal, and its forests were damaged by fire in 1919.
- Ribeira do Inferno
Porto Moniz · São Vicente. Limit of the range of Visnea mocanera.
The Ribeira do Inferno is a stream rising in the mountains of São Vicente parish and forming its western boundary with Seixal before reaching the sea. Its gorge, with several waterfalls, contains some of Madeira's most dramatic scenery, and its mouth is recommended as a coastal scenic spot. Its water feeds a state levada, the Levada do Caramujo, irrigating São Vicente; it also marks the limit of the range of Visnea mocanera and gave its name to an entail founded by Sanha.