Ceiba speciosa (A.St.-Hil., A.Juss. & Cambess.) Ravenna
| Kannada Name : | - |
| Common Name : | Silk floss tree |
| Family Name : | Malvaceae |
| Scientific Name : | Ceiba speciosa |
| Species Type : | Exotic |
| Phenology : | Deciduous |
| Conservation Status : | Least concern |
| Flowering Period : | September - October |
| Fruiting Period : | March - May |
| Origin : | South America |
Uses
The silk floss tree is cultivated mostly for ornamental purposes. The wood can be used to make canoes, as wood pulp, and to make paper. The bark has been used to make ropes. From the seeds it is possible to extract vegetable oil
Description
Deciduous tree, up to 25 m tall. Bark greenish in younger trees, covered with numerous spines. Leaves palmately compond, composed of 5 to 7 leafltes; leaflets more or less lanceolate, glabrous, base acute, apex acuminate, margin serrate. Inflorescence in clusters or soliatry in axils of terminal branches. Flowers bisexual, creamish-white in the center and pink towards the tips. Fruit a dehiscent capsule, about 20 cm long, seeds embedded in white cottony mass.
