Ceiba speciosa

English name: Silk floss tree

Latin name: Ceiba speciosa

Family: Mallows - Malvaceae

Origin: South America

The silk floss is a spreading tree, reaching up to 15 m. in height. The trunk of the young tree is green and covered with thorns, with age becoming gray and thick, in the form of a bottle. The leaves, long-tailed and palmate, fall during droughts, and the tree remains leafless even for several months. The tree’s outstanding decoration is its flowers, arranged in bunches and coloured pink, lilac or violet. The fruits are pear-shaped, brown packets which break and fall off, releasing a white powder.  As it flowers abundantly, the plant is widely planted in the tropics as a decorative tree.