Debbie Walsh, age 9, of Portland, Me., for her question:

WHAT TREE DOES MAHOGANY COME FROM?

The best kind of mahogany wood comes from a stately tree that grows in the West Indies. Its straight trunk may grow 75 feet high, taller than a seven‑story building. Its shady boughs stay green all year, and the leathery leaves are shaped somewhat like extra‑large rose leaves. In summer it has clusters of tiny white flowers. Later these turn into fat, round seed pods.

This mahogany tree can be coaxed to grow in Florida, Central America and parts of South America. Other mahogany‑type trees grow in Africa. The wood from all these trees is just right for making fine furniture. It is soft enough to cut and carve, hard enough to last a long time. It sheds water, and most insects refuse to chew holes in it. Best of all, mahogany wood can be polished to show lovely designs. Its color may be pale or medium brown or a deep, dark rusty red that glows like a butterfly's wings.