SHOWY CHORISIA 
WHITE LILY CHORISIA 
*"SHOWY CHORISIA (C. speciosa). 
Thorny-spiked, large, South American tree 
with large palmate leaves and_5-inch, 
bright pink lily-like flowers from Septem- 
ber to November. There are at least four 
types of this tree, with bright pink, white, 
purple and light pink flowers. (For de- 
tails see Menninger reprint, Natl. Hort. 
Mag., Jan. 1953). Plants I offer are all of 
the extra showy, bright pink type, seedl- 
ings of the McMullen tree near Clearwater 
and one of the most spectacular flowering 
trees in Florida. Too large for small yards, 
but magnificent in suitable locations. 
WEBERA (W. corymbosa). A large 
evergreen Indian shrub or small tree of the 
57 
coffee family, with beautiful hard shining 
leaves, and white, fragrant, gardenia-like 
flowers in big einetec: at the ends of each 
branch. Flowers from March to July. 
RED SILK COTTON 
*RED SILK COTTON (Bombax mala- 
baricum. Syn. Salmalia malabarica). An 
enormous Indian tree, often buttressed, 
sometimes prickly on the trunk when 
young, which in early Spring drops its 
leaves and covers the bare branches with 
quantities of very conspicuous crimson 
4-inch flowers ( occasionally pink or deep 
orange yellow). The numerous scarlet 
stamens are almost as long as the petals. 
In its whorled branches and_ radiating 
leaflets, Benthall says, this tree closely 
resembles the true kapok Ceiba pentandra, 
but Bombax has deep red underbark and 
its leaf stalks are 1 inch long, whereas in 
Ceiba these are very short. Many birds 
are attracted by Bombax flowers. The 
tree is suitable only for parks or large 
gardens. The biggest Bombax in Florida 
is at Safety Harbor, where it stands nearly 
75 feet high, more than that across the 
crown. 
*ANTHOCEPHALUS (A. cadamba; 
syn. A. indicus). Colthurst includes among 
Familiar Flowering Trees of India,” this 
large deciduous tree of the Coffee family. 
It has a clean stem and_ horizontal 
branches, very beautiful large leaves and 
fragrant flowers in handsome, long globu- 
lar orange heads with white stigmas, like 
pincushions full of pins. Fruit yellow, 
fleshy, size of small orange, edible. Allied 
to Nauclea. 
