Description
This plant is famous for its large, showy, six-inch flowers with thick, waxy, red petals that densely clothe leafless branch tips in late winter and early spring.
This Asian tropical tree has a straight tall tree and its leaves are deciduous in winter. Red flowers with 5 petals appear in the spring before the new foliage. It produces a capsule which, when ripe, contains white fibres like cotton. Its trunk bears spikes to deter attacks by animals.
Although its stout trunk suggests that it is useful for timber, its wood is too soft to be very useful.Plant Specifications
| Common Name | Silk cotton tree, Salmali, Bombax ceiba, and Simul tree |
| Maximum Reachable Height | 45 meters |
| Flower Colour | Red |
| Bloom Time | Feb-April |
| Difficulty Level | Easy to grow. |
Planting and care
Bombax malabaricum care
It can easily be propagated by seeds. soak the seeds in water 12 hours before sowing. Seeds can be sown in a sunny position in nursery beds. Water the seeds regularly. Germination will start in 10 - 25 days. Transplant 5cm tall seedlings to individual containers and plant out 12 months later.
| Sunlight | Full sun to partial shade. |
| Watering | moderately. |
| Soil | Well drained and fertile soil. |
| Temperature | 15-35 degrees C |
| Fertilizer | Apply any organic fertilizer. |
Bombax malabaricum special feature
It is a plant of Jyehstha Nakshatra.
Bombax malabaricum uses
Ornamental Use:
- Can be grown as a single tree in the home garden and used for avenue planting
Medicinal Use:
- The extracts of the Silk Cotton Tree are beneficial in the treatment of male sexual disorders
- It also has hemostatic properties and is administered during menorrhagia
- Silk Cotton Tree extracts are also helpful in the treatment of gastrointestinal disorders like dysentery and diarrhea
- Use only as per doctors prescription
Culinary Use:
- Its flower, flower bud, and young leaves are cooked as a vegetable
- Ripe seeds are eaten roasted
- Young roots are also eaten raw or roasted