''Cordia sebestena'' is a shrubby tree in the borage family,

Boraginaceae Boraginaceae, the Borago, borage or forget-me-not family, includes about 2,000 species of shrubs, trees, and herbs in 146 to 154 genus, genera with a worldwide distribution. The APG IV system from 2016 classifies the Boraginaceae as single famil ...

, native to the

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

tropics. It ranges from southern

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

in the

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and

the Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of ...

, southwards throughout

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

and the

Greater Antilles The Greater Antilles is a grouping of the larger islands in the Caribbean Sea, including Cuba, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, and Jamaica, together with Navassa Island and the Cayman Islands. Seven island states share the region of the Greater Antille ...

. Common names have included siricote or kopté (Mayan) in 19th Century northern Yucatán, scarlet cordia in Jamaica, and Geiger tree (after

Key West Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida, at the southern end of the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, it con ...

wrecker John Geiger) in Florida.

Description

''Cordia sebestena'' grows to a maximum height of at maturity, with a nearly equal spread. The crown is round to vase-shaped. Branches tend to be somewhat drooping, and the tree is naturally multitrunked. When only a single trunk is allowed to develop, it can attain a diameter of . The dense, evergreen foliage consists of dark green, leathery,

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ovate Ovate may refer to: * Ovate (egg-shaped) leaves, tepals, or other botanical parts *Ovate, a type of prehistoric stone hand axe * Ovates, one of three ranks of membership in the Welsh Gorsedd * Vates or ovate, a term for ancient Celtic bards ...

leaves, long, with wavy margins. These leaves are covered with small hairs, lending them a rough, "sandpapery" texture. Flowers are produced in clusters at branch ends throughout the year, particularly in the spring and summer. Flowers are wide, red-orange in color, tubular, flaring ( salverform) with 5–7 lobes, bearing 5–7 stamens of similar height. The species is

heterostylous Heterostyly is a unique form of polymorphism and herkogamy in flowers. In a heterostylous species, two or three morphological types of flowers, termed "morphs", exist in the population. On each individual plant, all flowers share the same morph. ...

and presumably

self-incompatible Self-incompatibility (SI) is a general name for several genetic mechanisms that prevent self-fertilization in sexually reproducing organisms, and thus encourage outcrossing and allogamy. It is contrasted with separation of sexes among individuals ...

. Pear-shaped fruits follow the flowers, averaging in length. Fruits are fragrant and edible, but not flavorful.

Cultivation

''Cordia sebestena'' is widely planted throughout the tropics as an

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or ''garden plants'' are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars th ...

in gardens for its showy

flower Flowers, also known as blooms and blossoms, are the reproductive structures of flowering plants ( angiosperms). Typically, they are structured in four circular levels, called whorls, around the end of a stalk. These whorls include: calyx, m ...

s. It is a slow-growing plant, and sheds enough leaves and fruit to require some upkeep. The wood is rather light in density, but branches are not prone to breakage. The tree should be pruned in its youth to establish a structure, as it is prone to low branching. Soil tolerance is fairly broad, provided the soil drains well. ''Cordia sebestena'' tolerates drought, but not frost. It is not particularly susceptible to pests and diseases, other than the geiger

tortoise beetle The Cassidinae (tortoise and leaf-mining beetles) are a subfamily of the leaf beetles, or Chrysomelidae. The antennae arise close to each other and some members have the pronotal and Elytron, elytral edges extended to the side and covering the le ...

, which can cause occasional defoliation. This plant tolerates salt spray found near the ocean. It enjoys full sun, and can grow in a part-day sun situation as well. Its uses include: street tree, shade tree, even as a container subject in its youth. It is planted in traffic medians and parking lots, and is a useful seaside subject.

Gallery

File:Scarlet Cordia buds.jpg, Buds of Scarlet cordia File:Cordia sebestena (1) leaves and flowers.jpg, Leaves and flowers Image:Geiger Tree (Cordia sebestena) leaves in Hyderabad, AP W 269.jpg, Leaves, underside (

Hyderabad, India Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

) Image:2013.06-406-015ap Geiger tree=scarlet cordia(Cordia sebestena(Boraginaceae) Dakar,SN sat01jun2013-1052h.jpg, Close-up of flower (

Dakar Dakar ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Senegal, largest city of Senegal. The Departments of Senegal, department of Dakar has a population of 1,278,469, and the population of the Dakar metropolitan area was at 4.0 mill ...

, Senegal) Image:Geiger Tree (Cordia sebestena) fruits in Hyderabad, AP W 270.jpg, Fruits (

) File:Cordia sebestena (2) trunk.jpg, Trunk of Cordia sebestena

References

USDA plant Classification Cordia sebestena

External links

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3042521 Constantly blooming plants sebestena Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Trees of the Caribbean Trees of Central America Flora of Florida Trees of Northern America Trees of the Yucatán Peninsula Garden plants of North America Ornamental trees Drought-tolerant trees