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White silk-cotton pods

Common name: White Silk Cotton Tree, True Kapok Tree, {Schwetsimul, Setsimul (Bengali)} {Safed Semul सफेद सेमुल, Safed savara सफेद सावरा (Hindi)}, Safeta savara सफेत सावरा (Marathi), Shweta shalmali श्वेत शालमली (Sanskrit), {Panji tannaku பஞ்சித்தணக்கு, Shalmali ல்மலி (Tamil)}, Tella buruga (Telugu), Sambal (Urdu)

 

Botanical name: Ceiba pentandra (L.) Gaertn.

- [ (SAY-buh) latinized form of the South American name for this tree; (pen-TAN-druh) five stamens ]

Synonyms: Bombax guineensis Schum. & Thonn. • Bombax occidentale Spreng. • Bombax orientale Spreng. • Bombax pentandrum L. • Ceiba caribaea (DC.) A. Chev. • Ceiba guineensis (Schum. & Thonn.) A. Chev. • Ceiba occidentalis (Spreng.) Burkill • Ceiba thonningii A. Chev. • Eriodendron anfractuosum DC. • Eriodendron caribaeum G. Don • Eriodendron guineense G. Don & Thonn. • Eriodendron orientale Kostel • Eriodendron pentandrum (L.) Kurz • Xylon pentandrum (L.) Kuntze

Family: Bombacaceae (baobab family)

 

Origin: Tropical America

 

 

Adult trees produce several hundred 15 cm seed pods. The pods contain seeds surrounded by a fluffy, yellowish fibre that is a mix of lignin and cellulose.

 

A similar fibre is found in the Indian Bombax ceiba (also known as Bombax malabaricum or "silk-cotton tree"). It is termed Indian kapok and is darker in colour and less buoyant than the true variety.

 

 

Ceiba is also the national tree of both Guatemala and Puerto Rico.

 

 

Courtesy:

- Dave's Garden

- Zipcode Zoo

- EcoPort

- Mytho-Fleurs

- Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name Database

- From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Note: Identification or description may not be accurate; it is subject to your review.

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Uploaded on January 7, 2007
Taken on January 7, 2007