Name: Silk cotton tree

Botanical name: Bombax ceiba

Description: A flowering tree of great scale that produces fiercely colored red or orange flowers. The silk cotton drops its leaves in late winter, making its bold flowers highly visible.

Flowers may be six or more inches across, and their waxy petals are recurved, surrounding two whorls, or rings of stamens, that are joined at the base surrounding a tall stigma. These parts sit in a cup-like calyx made of fused sepals. The flowers usually are held near the ends of the branches and, because they're filled with nectar, are attractive to birds, bees and bats in their home habitats of India and Asia. Each flower lasts a couple of days, dropping to create a carpet of floral litter, yet the flowering period can last several weeks.

The leaves are palmately compound. The website of the University of Miami's Gifford Arboretum describes many uses for the wood as well as the silk floss produced in the seed pods (insulation, soundproofing and more). www.bio.miami.edu/arboretum/Redsilkcottontree.html.

Height: 80 feet

Light: full sun

Culture: The silk cotton is not a demanding tree except for the litter. It likes seasonal wet and dry seasons, and does well in South Florida. Its size limits its use to parks, roadsides and public areas or large landscapes.

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