Ceiba pentandra

Botanical name: Ceiba pentandra (L.) Gaertn.,

Family: Bombacaceae

Common name: Kapok Tree

English name: Kapok tree, with cotton tree, silk cotton tree

Description: It is a deciduous tree with a pagoda-shaped, thin crown. It can become a very large tree, capable of reaching a height of 70 metres, buttressed trunk with a high canopy that can grow up to 70 metres (230 feet) in height. Three versions of the tree are found on our planet: that grown in tropical rainforests is a massive tree with spiny thorns protruding from its trunk. A second form grows in West African savannas, and it is a smaller tree with a smooth trunk. The third form is deliberately cultivated, with low branches and a smooth trunk. Its fruits are harvested for their kapok fibers, used to stuff mattresses, pillows and life preservers: it is the tree that envelops some of the buildings of Cambodia's Angkor Wat. The version cherished by the Maya is the rainforest version, which colonizes riverbanks and grows in several rainforest habitats. It grows rapidly as a young tree, between to 2-4 m (6.5-13 ft) each year. Its trunk is up to 3 m (10 ft) wide and it has no lower branches: instead, the branches are bunched at the top with an umbrella-like canopy. The ceiba's fruits contain large quantities of cottony kapok fibers which entangle the small seeds and transport them through wind and water. During its flowering period, the ceiba attracts bats and moths to its nectar, with nectar production in excess of 10 liters (2 gallons) per tree per night and an estimated 200 L (45 GAL) per flowing season.

Flowering & Fruiting: February –June

Distribution: S. America - Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, the Guyanas; north through C. America to Mexico; Caribbean; West tropical Africa.

IUCN: Unknown: Least Concern. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/61782438/61782442 

District:  All Districts

Uses: Tender leaves, buds and fruit are mucilaginous and are eaten like okra (Abelmoschus moschatus). Pleasant tasting cooking oil is extracted from the seed. The bark and the leaves are used in the treatment of bronchial congestion. The leaves are abortifacient, alterative, emollient, laxative and sedative. They are used in the treatment of scabies, diarrhoea, coughs, hoarse throats, fatigue and lumbago.

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