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Sterculia
Also called Tropical Chestnut, Tropical Chestnuts
Sterculia is a genus of about 180 tropical and subtropical trees in the mallow family, often called tropical chestnuts. Few are grown as garden or houseplants; the key to growing them is warm, frost-free conditions with plenty of sun.
Sterculia is a genus of about 180 species of flowering plants in the hibiscus family Malvaceae, subfamily Sterculioideae. It was formerly placed in the now obsolete family Sterculiaceae. Members of the genus are colloquially known as tropical chestnuts. Sterculia may be monoecious or dioecious, and its flowers unisexual or bisexual.
The pods, particularly those of S. foetida, contain seeds reported to be edible, with a taste similar to cocoa. However, the oil contains cyclopropene fatty acids which could be carcinogenic or co-carcinogenic.
Gum karaya is extracted from Sterculia species, and is used as a thickener and emulsifier in foods, as a laxative, and as a denture adhesive. In India, this is sourced from: Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madras, Madhya Pradesh and Chhota Nagpur.
This genus is pan-tropical, with species occurring in tropical and subtropical parts of Africa, Asia, the Indo-Pacific region and the Americas.
Panama tree · Hazel sterculia · Spotted Sterculia · Chinese Chestnut · Sterculia parviflora · Peanut tree · Sterculia rubiginosa · Sterculia
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Sterculia 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.
