African teak is a large deciduous tree growing to 50 metres (160 ft) high. The trunk is bare lower down with the first branch usually at least 20 metres (66 ft) above the ground. It often has several short buttress roots at the base. The bark is pale or dark grey, thick but little fissured, and if it gets damaged it oozes milky latex. There are a few thick branches in the crown all fairly horizontal giving an umbrella shape. The smaller branches hang down in female trees and curve up in male trees. The leaves are 5 to 10 centimetres (2.0 to 3.9 in) long, ovate or elliptical with a finely toothed edge, green and smooth above and slightly downy beneath. Older leaves turn yellow, and all the leaves have a prominent rectangular mesh of veins visible on the underside. The trees are dioecious. Male trees have white catkins that extend to 15 to 20 centimetres (5.9 to 7.9 in) and dangle from twigs at the axils of the leaves. Female trees have flower spikes measuring 5 to 6 centimetres (2.0 to 2.4 in) long by 2 cm (0.8 in) wide, green with prominent styles. The fruit are long, wrinkled and fleshy with the small seeds embedded in the pulp.

African teak is distributed across tropical central Africa. Its range extends from Guinea-Bissau in the west to Mozambique in the east. It is found in Angola, Benin, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda and Zimbabwe. Its natural habitat is in wet savannah, rainforest, riverine and low-altitude evergreen forests. It can tolerate an annual rainfall of less than 70 centimetres (28 in) or six months of drought as long as there is a stream or a ground water source nearby.

African teak has strong dark brown hardwood resistant to termites and is used for construction, furniture, joinery, panelling, floors and boats. The tree can be used in the control of erosion. It makes a good shade tree and is useful as a roadside tree in urban areas. It grows rapidly, can be coppiced and is ready for cutting after about fifty years. The tree is nitrogen fixing and the leaves are used for mulching.
The tree is also used in herbal medicine. The powdered bark is used for coughs, heart problems and lassitude. The latex is used as an anti-tumour agent and to clear stomach and throat obstructions. The leaves and the ashes also have medicinal uses.

Wood

• heartwood is brownish red in color. It becomes darker with getting older. Sometimes there are dark patches on it. There is a strange scent in newly cut wood.
• sapwood is whitish to pale yellowish brown in color. It can easily separate from heartwood.
• wood texture is hard and ring porous.
• density is 720 kg/meter cube.

 Teak is a yellowish brown timber with good grain and texture. Teak, though easily worked, can cause severe blunting on edged tools because of the presence of silica in the wood. Teak is often an effective material for the construction of both indoor and outdoor furniture. Teak's high oil content, high tensile strength and tight grain makes it particularly suitable for outdoor furniture applications. Over time teak can mature to a silvery-grey finish, especially when exposed to sunlight. It is used in the manufacture of outdoor furniture, boat decks, and other articles where weather resistance is desired. It is also used for cutting boards, indoor flooring, countertops and as a veneer for indoor furnishings. Teak is used extensively in India to make doors and window frames, furniture, and columns and beams in old type houses. It is very resistant to termite attacks. Mature teak fetches a very good price. It is grown extensively by forest departments of different states in forest areas

with  indian teak

It is used in the furniture making, boat decks and for indoor flooring. It is widely used to make the doors and house windows. It is resistant to the attack of termites. Its wood contains scented oil which is the repellent to insects. The leaves yield the dye which is used to colour the clothes and edible. Teak is probably the best protected commercial species in the world. Mature teak fetches a very good price. It is grown extensively by forest departments of different states in forest areas. Teak's high oil content, strong tensile strength and tight grain makes it particularly suitable for outdoor furniture applications.  Teak is durable even when not treated with oil or varnish.

Teak also holds medicinal value. The bark is bitter tonic and is considered useful in fever. It is also useful in headache and stomach problems. Digestion may be enhanced by the teak wood or bark.

Cultivation methods : The new plants can also be propagated from cuttings. It is usually planted when the four to six weeks old. Plough the land thoroughly and level it. The best season to plant the teak is monsoon, most probably after the first shower. Carry out weeding operations regularly. Teal requires loamy soil rich in humus and having the right content of moisture with good drainage. It grows well in hilly and dry areas. It requires a dry tropical climate for its growth. It flowers in february and March.

Medicinal uses : Teak also holds the medicinal value. The bark is bitter tonic and is considered useful in fever. It is also useful in headache and stomach problems. Digestion may be enhanced by the teak wood or bark. .

Other uses : It is used in the furniture making, boat decks and for indoor flooring. It is widely used to make the doors and house windows. It is resistant to the attack of termites. Its wood contains scented oil which is the repellent to insects. The leaves yield the dye which is used to colour the clothes and edible. Teak is probably the best protected commercial species in the world.

Teak's natural oils make it useful in exposed locations, and make the timber termite and pest resistant. Teak is durable even when not treated with oil or varnish. Timber cut from old teak trees was once believed to be more durable and harder than plantation grown teak. Studies have shown that plantation teak performs on par with old-growth teak in erosion rate, dimensional stability, warping, and surface checking, but is more susceptible to color change from UV exposure.
The vast majority of commercially harvested teak is grown on teak plantations found in Indonesia and controlled by Perum Perhutani (a state owned forest enterprise) that manages the country's forests. The primary use of teak harvested in Indonesia is in the production of outdoor teak furniture for export.Nilambur in Kerala, India is also a major producer of Teak of fine quality, holds the world's oldest Teak plantation.
Teak consumption raises a number of environmental concerns, such as the disappearance of rare old-growth teak. However, its popularity has led to growth in sustainable plantation teak production throughout the seasonally dry tropics in forestry plantations. The Forest Stewardship Council offers certification of sustainably grown and harvested teak products. Propagation of teak via tissue culture for plantation purposes is commercially viable.
Teak plantations were widely established in Equatorial Africa during the Colonial era. These timber resources, as well as the oil reserves, are at the heart of the current (2014) South Sudanese conflict.
Much of the world's teak is exported by Indonesia and Myanmar. There is also a rapidly growing plantation grown market in Central America (Costa Rica) and South America.
Hyblaea puera, a moth native to southeast Asia, is a teak pest whose caterpillar feeds on teak and other species of trees common in the region.