Ceiba speciosa

Ceiba speciosa, often better known by its former name Chorisia, is a tree of tropical climates that will delight exoticism enthusiasts. Its palmate foliage is graceful, but it is especially its flowering that attracts attention. In autumn, it is covered with large pink flowers, forming a magnificent spectacle. On young trees, the bark is also decorative, with a beautiful green colour that turns grey with age. And the last ornamental feature, the trunk is adorned with massive thorns, giving it an astonishing graphic design. As it ages, the trunk takes on a swollen shape at the base, making it resemble a bottle. Reserved for the mildest areas of France, it can also be grown in large pots elsewhere.

The Faux Kapok or bottle tree belongs to the Malvaceae family, which has absorbed the Bombacaceae family, just like the Baobab. It is native to South America, Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, where it grows in subtropical and tropical forests up to 600m (1968ft) altitude. In these regions, it can reach a height of 30m (98ft 5in) and forms a massive trunk with a diameter of up to 2m (6ft 7in).
In France, it can only be grown outdoors on the French Riviera and in the mildest areas of the Atlantic coast. The mini botanical garden of Bormes-les-Mimosas, hidden in the narrow streets of the old village, houses a majestic specimen of over 10m (32ft 10in) in height, with an upright habit (about 6m (19ft 8in) wide). It grows rapidly in the first years and has a very beautiful green bark. Then its growth slows down as it becomes more massive, and its mature bark turns grey, a beautiful "elephant" grey, as its habit evokes the power of this animal. As it ages, it takes on a characteristic "bottle" shape, due to the swelling of the base of the trunk. A remarkable feature, large grey conical spines cover the trunk and large branches, giving it a unique appearance.
As for the foliage, it is very light and graceful, consisting of palmate leaves composed of 5 or 7 leaflets about 12cm (4.7in) long, of a medium green colour. This foliage is semi-evergreen to deciduous depending on the winter temperatures. The flowering, which begins in late summer in our hemisphere, lasts for several weeks. Large flowers with a diameter of 10 to 15cm, composed of 5 pink petals with a white to yellow centre, then cover the tree, offering a magnificent spectacle. They develop into green fruits, elliptical in shape and vaguely resembling certain pears or avocados, but larger as they can reach up to 20cm (7.9in) in length. The large seeds they contain are surrounded by a fibrous and cottony white material, like the kapok derived from the C. pentandra species.
C. speciosa grows in neutral to acidic, moist to dry, and well-drained soil. It likes full sun but not wind. Its hardiness is low, the foliage is affected from -1°C (30.2 °F) but a well-rooted plant can withstand up to -5°C.

While planting the faux kapok tree outdoors is reserved for the most privileged climates in France, it is still possible to grow it in a pot and overwinter it indoors, especially as it can tolerate heating. In this case, a sufficiently large container (40 to 50 litres) and a high enough room must be chosen to accommodate it, because even if its dimensions will be constrained by the limited root volume, it will not stay under the usual 2.50m (8ft 2in) ceilings for long... On the French Riviera, it will be a valuable addition to create a tropical-inspired scene alongside other plants with exotic appearances, such as the Syagrus romanzoffiana, a superb palm tree resembling a coconut tree, or the Phytolacca dioica (Belombra), which quickly forms spectacular trunks.