Ceiba pentandra (L.) Gaertn.

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Ceiba pentandra

Photo: Mark Hyde
National Botanic garden, Harare

Ceiba pentandra

Photo: Mark Hyde
National Botanic garden, Harare

Ceiba pentandra

Photo: Mark Hyde
National Botanic garden, Harare

Ceiba pentandra

Photo: Mark Hyde
National Botanic garden, Harare

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Species details: Click on each item to see an explanation of that item (Note: opens a new window)

Synonyms: Bombax pentandrum L.
Ceiba casearia Medik.
Eriodendron anfractuosum DC.
Common names: Kapok tree (English) Silk-cotton tree (English)
Description: Large tree, to 50 m or more. Trunk large, usually spiny, with wide narrow buttresses. Leaves palmate ; leaflets 5-7, oblong-lanceolate, to 15 cm long, entire. Flowers usually appearing before the leaves. Calyx with 5 short lobes. Petals to 3.5 cm long, oblong-obovate, white, yellowish or rose. Capsule 10 - 25 cm long, ellipsoid to fusiform.
Notes:
Derivation of specific name: pentandra: with five stamens.
Flowering time:
Worldwide distribution: Pantropical.
Growth form(s): Tree.
Insects associated with this species:
Spot characters: Display spot characters for this species
Literature:

Bailey, L.H. & Bailey, E.Z. (1976). Hortus Third. A concise Dictionary of Plants Cultivated in the United States and Canada Macmillan Publishing Co, Inc., New York Page 239.

Burrows, J.E., Burrows, S.M., Lötter, M.C. & Schmidt, E. (2018). Trees and Shrubs Mozambique Publishing Print Matters (Pty), Cape Town. Page 560. (Includes a picture).

Wild, H. (1961). Bombacaceae Flora Zambesiaca 1(2) Pages 414 - 517. (Includes a picture).

Other sources of information about Ceiba pentandra:

Our websites:

Flora of Caprivi: cultivated Ceiba pentandra
Flora of Malawi: cultivated Ceiba pentandra
Flora of Mozambique: Ceiba pentandra
Flora of Zambia: Ceiba pentandra
Flora of Zambia: cultivated Ceiba pentandra
Flora of Zimbabwe: cultivated Ceiba pentandra

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Ceiba pentandra
African Plant Database: Ceiba pentandra
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Ceiba pentandra
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Ceiba pentandra
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Ceiba pentandra
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Ceiba pentandra
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Ceiba pentandra
JSTOR Plant Science: Ceiba pentandra
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Ceiba pentandra
Plants of the World Online: Ceiba pentandra
Tropicos: Ceiba pentandra
Wikipedia: Ceiba pentandra


Copyright: Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Meg Coates Palgrave 2007-24

Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. & Coates Palgrave, M. (2024). Flora of Mozambique: Cultivated Plants: Species information: Ceiba pentandra.
https://www.mozambiqueflora.com/cult/species.php?species_id=167510, retrieved 28 March 2024

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