suitable for certain types of fruit and vegetable 

 containers, novelties, toys, and temporary forms. 

 The Spanish common name balsa, meaning raft 

 and perhaps of aboriginal origin, is associated 

 with the use of the buoyant logs by the Indians for 

 rafts. 



The woolly or silky hairs of the seed capsules are 

 employed for stuffing pillows and mattresses, be- 

 ing similar to the kapok fibers of commerce ob- 

 tained from the related tree, c«iba. It is reported 

 that these fibers have been used also in felt hats. 

 Ropes have been made from the fibrous bark, which 

 also contains tannin. 



The trees are sometimes grown as ornamentals 

 for the large leaves and large flowers, such as in 

 southern Florida. 



Scattered in the moist coast, moist limestone, and 

 lower mountain regions of Puerto Rico. Requir- 

 ing full sunlight, it is confined to open areas, such 

 as roadsides, clearings, and cutover forests, where 

 the wind-borne seeds are widely distributed. Grer- 

 mination is rapid, especially following fire. Trees 

 attain mature size within 6-10 years, sometimes 

 averaging 10 feet in height growth a year. 



Public forests. — Cambalache, Carite, Guaja- 

 taca, Luquillo, Rio Abajo, Susua. 



Range. — Widely distributed in tropical America 

 with minor variations distinguished as species by 



BOMBAX FAMILY 



155. Garrocho 



This small tree is limited to deep shade of moist 

 forests and characterized by : ( 1 ) straight erect 

 trunk and axis with horizontal branches attached 

 in circles of 5 or 4 together at the same point ; (2) 

 elliptic leaves 3-9 inches long and 1^/^-4 inches 

 broad, short-petioled, slightly thickened, strongly 

 odorous when dry; (3) lateral whitish funnel- 

 shaped flowers % inch long, mostly single and al- 

 most stalkless at base of leaves; and (4) rounded, 

 orange, fleshy fruits % inch in diameter. 



An evergreen tree becoming 20 feet in height 

 and 6 inches in trunk diameter. The branches, at- 

 tached in whorls about lV^-2 feet apart along the 

 axis, are distinctive of this genus. The gray- 

 brown bark is smoothish but finely warty. Inner 

 bark is yellowish and slightly bitter. Twigs are 

 brown, with faint rings where leaves are borne. 



The alternate leaves have petioles i/4-% inch 

 long. Blades are short-pointed at both ends, with- 

 out teeth on edges, dark green and slightly shiny 

 with sunken lateral veins on upper surface and 

 dull yellow green beneath. At base of young 

 leaves is a pair of narrow pointed gray scales 

 (stipules) %6 inch long, which slied early, leaving 

 a ring scar. 



The flowers are attached on very short stalks 

 along the twigs, bear minute star-shaped hairs, and 

 have a peculiar odor. The narrow green calyx 

 tube is %-V2 iiich long, slightly and irregularly 

 2- or 3-lobed ; there are 5 spreading whitish petals 



336 



some authors. Greater Antilles and Lesser An- 

 tilles from St. Kitts to Grenada, and Trinidad and 

 Tobago. Also from southern Mexico to Ecuador, 

 Pern, Bolivia, and Brazil. Planted also in south- 

 ena Florida and Dutch West Indies. 



Other common names. — false cork-tree (Virgin 

 Islands) ; balsa, palo de balsa, balso (Spanish) ; 

 palo de lana, lana, lanero (Dominican Republic) ; 

 lanero, ceibon botija (Cuba) ; corcho (Mexico) ; 

 lana, cajeto, lanilla, guano, corcho, jujul (Guate- 

 mala) ; guano, tambor (Honduras) ; algodon (El 

 Salvador) ; gatillo (Nicaragua) ; lana, cottontree 

 (Panama) ; tucumo, ceiba de lana, lana (Colom- 

 bia) ; huampo, topa (Peru) ; balsa, balsa- wood 

 (United States, English, commerce) ; corkwood, 

 downtree, bombast mahoe (Jamaica) ; bois flot 

 (St. Lucia, Dominica, Trinidad and Tobago) ; 

 polak (British Honduras) ; coton fleurs, mahau- 

 deme (Haiti) ; bois flot (Guadeloupe, Marti- 

 nique) ; fromager mapou, bois liege, bois pripri, 

 patte lapin, bois lievre (Guadeloupe) ; balsa 

 (Brazil). 



Botanical synonyms. — Ochroma J)icolor Row- 

 lee, O. hoUvmna Rowlee, 0. grandifora Rowlee, 0. 

 1-agop^is Sw., 0. lagopios var. hicolor (Rowlee) 

 Standi. & Steyerm., O. limonensis Rowlee, 0. 

 ohhi.sa Rowlee, 0. peniviava Johnst., O. tomentosa 

 Willd., 0. velutina Rowlee. 



(BOMBACACEAE) 



Quararibaea turhinata (Sw.) Poir. 



more than ^o iiich long; stamen column % inch 

 long, with many anthers clustered at apex; and 

 pistil with 2- or 3-celled ovary, slender style, and 

 enlarged stigma inside the stamen column. 



The rounded, orange fleshy fruits are slightly 

 broader than long, with calyx remaining at base, 

 and have 1 or 2 large seeds. Flowers are produced 

 chiefly in spring (February to May), and fruits 

 mature slightly later (February to July). 



The sapwood is whitish and hard. The wood is 

 little used in Puerto Rico. Formerly the stems 

 were used for goad sticks, as the Spanish common 

 name indicates. Because of the peculiar branch- 

 ing, small stems could serve as hatracks. 



An understory tree of the moist coast, moist 

 limestone, and lower mountain regions of Puerto 

 Rico. Also Vieques, St. Jolin, and St. Croix. Re- 

 discovered in St. Croix in 1954, more than 150 

 years after an earlier collection there. 



Public forests. — Cambalache, Guajataca, Lu- 

 quillo, Rio Abajo. 



Municipality avhere especially common. — 46. 



Range. — Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Vieques, St. 

 John, and St. Croix, and Lesser Antilles from St. 

 Eustatius, St. Kitts, and Antigua to Grenada. 

 Also recorded from Surinam. 



Other common names. — palo de garrocha, asu- 

 billo (Puerto Rico) ; molinillo (Dominican Re- 

 public) ; swizzle-stick-tree (Lesser Antilles) ; 

 millerwood (St. Eustatius). 



