Ever hear of a Kopak tree?

[Pappy]

I hadn’t until yesterday while I was researching pictures of old Florida for my forum. There is one in Clearwater, FL and a few in other states, Maryland for one. Here’s a couple photos of the tree.
The Kapok tree's official name is Ceiba ( pronounced SAY-ba) Pentandra in the family Bombacaceae, but others consider this tree a subfamily of the Malvaceae. Ceiba Pentandra is native to Mexico, Central America and Caribbean, Northern South America and tropical West Africa.Jul 23, 2017

 

[Aunt Marg]

Very unique looking tree, and I really fancy the root structure.

 

[Knight]

Now I know where the shape of aliens come from.

 

[JustBonee]

very interesting tree ..

 

[Rosemarie]

Is it the source of kapok, which used to be used as stuffing for cushions and quilts?

 

[DaveA]

A few more years of ignoring the global warming trend and we'll probably have them up here in New England.

 

[Pappy]

Yes Knight, it does look like an alien:

 

[JustBonee]

Then there's the Banyan trees in Hawaii ...

 

[MarciKS]

I hadn’t until yesterday while I was researching pictures of old Florida for my forum. There is one in Clearwater, FL and a few in other states, Maryland for one. Here’s a couple photos of the tree.
The Kapok tree's official name is Ceiba ( pronounced SAY-ba) Pentandra in the family Bombacaceae, but others consider this tree a subfamily of the Malvaceae. Ceiba Pentandra is native to Mexico, Central America and Caribbean, Northern South America and tropical West Africa.Jul 23, 2017View attachment 117396View attachment 117397

Very pretty.

 

[-Oy-]

WOW what a tree - I;d love to get my camera around one of those!

 

[jujube]

Then there's the Banyan trees in Hawaii ...

We have banyons here in Florida, too. There's a big one at the Ringling museum in Sarasota.

 

[jujube]

Is it the source of kapok, which used to be used as stuffing for cushions and quilts?

It used to be used in life jackets, too. It was good until it got waterlogged when the inner lining of the jacket leaked and then you'd better learn to swim.

 

[Manatee]

We went to the Kapok tree restaurant in Clearwater many times. The garden with the statues was very striking.

There are Banyan trees in Ft Myers and Coconut Grove near Miami.

 

[RadishRose]

It used to be used in life jackets, too. It was good until it got waterlogged when the inner lining of the jacket leaked and then you'd better learn to swim.

We actually had one down in the basement when I was little. Never knew where it came from, but I remember a tag sewn on that said "Kapok".

History

Natural materials were first used to create flotation devices. Before 1900, life jackets were made from cork and balsa wood. A material called kapok was later used as the fill material in life vests. Kapok is a vegetable fiber found in tropical tree pods, resembling milkweed. The waxy coating which covers the kapok fiber provided the necessary buoyancy. The kapok fiber was sealed in vinyl plastic packets to prevent exposure to the water. One problem with the vinyl-sealed kapok fiber life jacket was that the packets could be punctured, causing the jacket to lose its buoyancy. Kapok is now prohibited for use in life preservers in most of Europe and in Canada.
http://www.madehow.com/Volume-2/Life-Vest.html