The open plant encyclopedia
Snap a photo or search by any name to see how to care for it, where it comes from, whether it's safe, and a 3D model you can turn.
The plants people record most in your country, and ones that grow there wild.
Filter by what you want to do, shape, origin, country, care and safety.
Cordia sebestena
Also called Broadleaf, Geiger Tree, Dog Almond, Scarlet Accordia, Geranium Tree, Large Leaf Geigertree, Geigertree
In Singapore: Orange-Geiger Tree, Geiger Tree, Sebestens, Scarlet Cordia (Grown in Singapore)
A shrubby evergreen tree from the American tropics, grown for its showy red-orange tubular flowers that bloom through much of the year. It is a slow grower that needs full sun, good drainage and protection from frost.
Cordia sebestena is a shrubby tree in the family Cordiaceae, native to the American tropics. It ranges from southern Florida in the United States and the Bahamas, southwards throughout Central America and the Greater Antilles. The variety endemic to the Cayman Islands is a Vulnerable species. Common names have included siricote or kopté (Mayan) in 19th Century northern Yucatán, scarlet cordia in Jamaica, and Geiger tree (after Key West wrecker John Geiger) in Florida.
Cordia sebestena is widely planted throughout the tropics as an ornamental plant in gardens for its showy flowers. It is a slow-growing plant, and sheds enough leaves and fruit to require some upkeep. The wood is rather light in density, but branches are not prone to breakage. The tree should be pruned in its youth to establish a structure, as it is prone to low branching. Soil tolerance is fairly broad, provided the soil drains well. Cordia sebestena tolerates drought, but not frost. It is not particularly susceptible to pests and diseases, other than the geiger tortoise beetle, which can cause occasional defoliation. This plant tolerates salt spray found near the ocean. It enjoys full sun, and can grow in a part-day sun situation as well. Its uses include: street tree, shade tree, even as a container subject in its youth. It is planted in traffic medians and parking lots, and is a useful seaside subject.
Spanish elm · Glue berry tree · Kou · Mucilage manjack · Cordia
[Contains information from Leaf Area Index (LAI) and Heritage Trees from data.gov.sg (National Parks Board), made available under the terms of the Singapore Open Data Licence version 1.0]
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Cordia sebestena 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.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
