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Kapok

Ceiba

Kapok
Photo: Unknown author, Public domain

Ceiba is a genus of very large tropical trees in the mallow family, Malvaceae, with the kapok tree (Ceiba pentandra) the best known and most widely grown member. It is grown as a large shade or landscape tree in warm climates and is not a typical houseplant.

Family
Malvaceae (Mallow family)
Grows as
Tree
Light
Full sun
Water
Water deeply during dry spells while young, then rely mostly on rainfall once established.
Soil
Well-drained soil, tolerant of many types.
Temperature
Warm tropical conditions; frost-sensitive and protect young plants below about 5 °C.
How easy
Moderate

About

Ceiba is a genus of trees in the family Malvaceae, native to tropical and subtropical areas of the Americas (from Mexico and the Caribbean to northern Argentina) and tropical West Africa. Some species can grow to 70 m (230 ft) tall or more, with a straight, largely branchless trunk that culminates in a huge, spreading canopy, and buttress roots that can be taller than a grown person. The best-known, and most widely cultivated, species is kapok, Ceiba pentandra, one of several trees known as kapok. Ceiba is a word from the Taíno language meaning "boat" because Taínos would use the wood to build their dugout canoes.

Ceiba species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera (butterfly and moth) species, including the leaf-miner Bucculatrix ceibae, which feeds exclusively on the genus.

Other Ceiba plants

Pochote · White Silk Floss Tree · Kapok · Silk floss tree

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Ceiba by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.

The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.

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