Hardwood
Pochote
Pochota fendleri (Seem.) W.S.Alverson & M.C.Duarte
Belize to northern South America
Fun factEach flower opens around seven in the evening and drops its petals and stamens by the next afternoon. In Guanacaste its main pollinator is a small nectar bat, Glossophaga soricina.
A large deciduous timber tree of the Pacific dry forest, its trunk and branches usually armed with stout, conical woody spines. It drops its leaves in the dry season and flowers while bare; the night-opening white flowers are visited mainly by bats. Woody capsules split open to release seeds wrapped in brown, kapok-like wool, which the wind carries off.
Sourced · see Record tab
Wildacross the estate
FamilyMalvaceae
Spanish namePochote
Also known asRed ceiba, Cedro espino, Cedro espinoso, Ceiba roja, Ceiba tolú
Native toNative from Belize, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua through Costa Rica and Panama to Colombia, Venezuela and northern Brazil; in Costa Rica it grows on the Pacific slope, mainly from sea level to about 900 m.
Grows wild across the estate.