The Thorny Trees That Produce Cotton Pods and Pink Flowers

Native to South America, the Chorisia speciosa, more commonly known as the floss silk tree (or silk floss tree), is a deciduous, exotic-looking tree used mainly for ornamental---rather than practical---purposes. The thorny tree produces cottony white pods and intensely pink flowers. Due to its showy appearance, it is a popular choice amongst many landscapers (frequently placed near parking lots, in medians and along sidewalks). However, due to its wide-spreading branches and root base, planters must take care not to plant silk floss trees too near to areas topped with pavement. Found in only southern parts of the United States (such as the southern portions of states such as California, Arizona, Texas and Florida), the silk floss tree thrives in tropical and sub-tropical regions.

The trunk of the silk floss tree can become very bulbous, its branches spreading out wide during growth and growing to a height of more than 50 feet. The trunk and its branches are typically green (due to a high concentration of chlorophyll) but gray as they age. The bark of the silk floss tree is pocked with bulging, triangular spines (appearing almost like the stem of a rose underneath the lens of a magnifying glass). Approach any silk floss tree with caution, as the trunk can easily cause harm to those who come into contact with its spines. Thin strips of the tree's bark can be used to weave rope.

As autumn nears and the silk floss tree begins to lose its leaves, the depleting foliage is replaced with clusters of gaudy, five-petaled flowers. Silk floss tree flowers resemble hibiscuses, their colors ranging from light pink to deep pink to purple with a white or ivory center. As winter approaches, the silk floss tree becomes a glowing fireball of pinks and purples. It is because of this that the tree has become a popular use in ornamentation.

Fruits pods follow the growth of the silk floss tree's flowers. Oval and pear-like in shape, the inedible fruit grows up to eight inches long before splitting open to reveal masses of white, silk-like material (also resembling tufts of cotton) and tiny black seeds. The hulls of the fruit pods are woody and the interior floss resembles the fiber found inside the seed pods of the kapok tree (the silk floss tree is in fact related to the kapok tree). Although the floss is not suitable enough to be woven into usable fibers, it is widely used as a stuffing.