Kapok Tree, Cotton Tree, Suma'ma

Ceiba pentandra

Physical Characteristics

Ceiba pentandra is a deciduous Tree growing to 50 m (164ft) by 30 m (98ft) at a fast rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 10 and is frost tender. The flowers are pollinated by Bats, Moths, Bees. The plant is not self-fertile. It is noted for attracting wildlife. Suitable for: medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils and can grow in very acid, very alkaline and saline soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers dry or moist soil. The plant is not wind tolerant.

Distribution

S. America - Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, the Guyanas; north through C. America to Mexico; Caribbean; West tropical Africa.

Habitats

Edible Uses

Edible Parts: Flowers Fruit Leaves Oil Seed Edible Uses: Drink Oil Salt Edible portion: Seeds, Leaves, Calyces, Flowers, Vegetable, Fruit. Tender leaves, buds and fruit are mucilaginous and are eaten like okra (Abelmoschus moschatus)[ 301 ]. Seed - raw or cooked. Roasted and ground into a powder, it is eaten in soups and used as a flavouring[ 301 ]. The seed can be sprouted and eaten raw or cooked in soups etc[ 301 ]. One report says that the seed is toxic[ 238 ]. A pleasant tasting cooking oil is extracted from the seed[ 301 , 418 ]. Although the seed is toxic, the oil is edible[ 238 ]. The oil has a yellow colour and a pleasant, mild odour and taste resembling cottonseed oil. It becomes rancid quickly when exposed to air. Flowers - blanched and eaten with chilli sauce[ 301 ]. The dried stamens are added to curries and hot, sour soup for colouring[ 301 ]. The wood ashes are used as a salt substitute[ 299 , 301 ]. The resin from the trunk is put in water and drunk.

Medicinal Uses

Abortifacient Alterative Antiasthmatic Antidiarrhoeal Antirheumatic Antitussive Astringent Contraceptive Diuretic Dysentery Emollient Febrifuge Hypotensive Laxative Leprosy Mouthwash Ophthalmic Oxytoxic Sedative Skin Kapok is an astringent, diuretic herb that lowers fevers, relaxes spasms and controls bleeding[ 238 ]. The leaves contain several active compounds including derivatives of quercetin and kaempferol, tannins and caffeic acid[ 348 ]. The leaves are abortifacient, alterative, emollient, laxative and sedative[ 299 ]. They are used in the treatment of scabies, diarrhoea, coughs, hoarse throats, fatigue and lumbago[ 238 , 299 , 303 ]. A decoction of the tender shoots is used as a contraceptive[ 303 ]. Young leaves are warmed and mixed with palm oil to be eaten as a remedy for heart problems.[ 299 ]. The leaf sap is drunk as a remedy for mental illness[ 299 ]. The juice from bruised young branches is used in a preparation to treat asthma[ 238 ]. Applied externally, the pounded leaves are used as a dressing on sores, sprains, tumours, abscesses, whitlows etc[ 238 , 299 , 303 ]. The leaf sap is applied on skin infections[ 299 ]. Leaf macerations are used in baths as a treatment against general fatigue, fevers, stiffness of the limbs, headache and bleeding of pregnant women[ 238 , 299 ]. They are used as an eye-bath to treat conjunctivitis, remove foreign bodies from the eye and help heal wounds in the eye[ 299 ]. The leaves can be picked at any time during the growing season and are used either fresh or dried[ 238 ]. The bark and the leaves are used in the treatment of bronchial congestion[ 238 ]. Externally, they are used in baths to treat fevers and headaches[ 238 ]. The root and stem barks are credited with emetic and antispasmodic properties[ 299 ]. A decoction of the stem bark is taken to treat stomach problems, diarrhoea, hernia, gonorrhoea, heart trouble, oedema, fever, asthma and rickets[ 299 ]. Macerations of the bark are said to be a cure for heart trouble and hypertension, and are credited with stimulant and anthelmintic properties[ 299 ]. Stem bark decoctions are used in mouth washes for treating toothache and mouth problems, they are also applied on swollen fingers, wounds, sores, furuncles and leprous macules[ 299 ]. The bark, often as a powder, is used as a treatment on wounds[ 238 , 299 , 739 ]. A decoction of the bark is used as a wash to treat fevers[ 348 ]. The bark is usually harvested in the dry season[ 238 ]. The gum is abortifacient and astringent. It is eaten to relieve stomach upset[ 303 ]. It is also taken internally to control abnormal uterine bleeding, dysentery and diarrhoea in children[ 238 , 299 ]. The gum is harvested from incisions made into the trunk of young trees, made as the sap is rising at the end of the dry season[ 238 ]. A decoction of the boiled roots is used to treat oedema, diarrhoea, dysentery, dysmenorrhoea and hypertension[ 299 , 303 ]. The decoction is also said to be oxytocic[ 299 ]. The root forms part of preparations that are used to treat leprosy[ 299 ]. The flowers are emollient. They are used as a remedy for constipation[ 299 ] The fruit is emollient. The powdered fruit is taken with water as a remedy for intestinal parasites and stomach-ache[ 299 ]. The seed floss is used for cleaning wounds[ 299 ]. The seed oil is rubbed in to affected areas to relieve rheumatism, and is also applied to heal wounds[ 299 ].

Known Hazards

The seeds, and the oil, contain cyclopropenoid fatty acids such as malvalic acid (7 - 8%) and sterculic acid (3%), which cause abnormal physiological reactions in animals. Therefore the consumption of kapok seeds or seed oil should be discouraged unless the cyclopropenoid acids have been chemically removed[ 299 ]. Kapok fibre is irritating to the eyes, nose and throat, and workers exposed to kapok dust for long periods may develop chronic bronchitis[ 299 ]. (Plant has spines or sharp edges; use extreme caution when handling )