Silk Floss Tree
Considered one of the most beautiful trees in the world, the Silk Floss Tree is a deciduous tropical plant from Brazil and Argentina. Chorisia is a large tree which can grow to over 50 feet high with a spread as wide. Floss Silk Tree is well known for the large spikes protecting the trunk and limbs and the woody seed-pods which produce a soft silk that protects its seeds. The silk in the seeds pods was used to stuff life-jackets and pillows in an earlier time in history.
Plant Facts:
Common Name: ‘Monsa’ Floss Silk Tree, Silk Floss Tree, “Kapok tree”
Botanical Name: Ceiba speciosa, formerly Chorisia speciosa
Family: Bombacaceae
Plant Type: Deciduous tree
Origin: Brazil, Argentina
Zones: 9 – 11 (saplings are sensitive to frost, but mature trees can tolerate temperatures to 20 degrees F for short periods of time).
Height: 35 to 50′ — width about the same so give it room
Rate of Growth: Fast the first couple years, then slows considerably
Salt Tolerance: Medium
Soil Requirements: Well drained, moist, fertile humus
Water Requirements: Water moderately, less water in winter
Nutritional Requirements: Balanced liquid fertilizer monthly
Light Requirements: Full sun
Form: Round
Leaves: Alternate, 5-7-palmate leaves
Flowers: Open, funnel-shaped flowers in October-November
Fruits: Woody pods filled with fluffy silk
Pests: Young plants affected by scale insects
Uses: Specimen tree, recommended for buffer strips around parking lots or for median strip plantings in the highway, shade tree, residential street tree
Bad Habits: Leaf drop, fruit (pods) hard on lawn mowers and should be picked up before cutting turf under the tree
Cost: $$ — reasonable
Propagation: sow seeds from spring to early summer
Sources (“As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.”): AMERICAN HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY A-Z ENCYCLOPEDIA OF GARDEN PLANTS; FLOWERING TREES OF FLORIDA
