ecobites.com

Making your life greener - one bite at a time.

KAPOK TREE
(Cochlospermum gillivraei)
Greg Calvert

The cause of this confusion lies in the common name and it is a case of mistaken identity that has caught many people trying to buy native Kapok from In Australia there are two true native Kapoks. There is our local species and another which looks almost identical (except for leaf shape), which is very common in Kakadu National Park and is called Cochlospermum fraseri. The native Silk Cotton Tree (Bombax ceiba) is also sometimes known as Red Kapok, although this has red, rather than yellow flowers.

The species most commonly confused in nurseries is the central American Kapok (Ceiba pentandra). When young, they look very similar in leaf shape, but as they mature, they become very different. While our native Kapok would rarely reach more than 15-20 metres in height, the exotic Kapok can grow to 40 metres and has dull white flowers instead of the yellow of our glorious native species. It is rarely grown intentionally, since it is known to cause hayfever and asthma.
 
 
Kapok Tree
Cochlospermum fraseri. Family Cochlospermaceae

Usually found on rocky slopes and vine thicket gullies (around Townsville and further north into the Northern Territory), the Kapok loses all its leaves before flowering, which makes the flowering more obvious. The flowers are edible raw and are quite pleasant. They are mucilaginous and slimy to chew on and I can't help but compare them to Marshmallow every time I eat them. Although more than 90% water, they are surprisingly high in Vitamin C! The tap root of young plants is also edible when roasted and has moderate levels of most nutrients. The same is true of the Northern Territory species, whose root is also pounded and used extensively as medicine for sores.

After the yellow flowers are pollinated, large, globular, green, papery fruit develop, which eventually turn brown and split along the seams to release their seed. The small black seeds are woven in a dense mat of fine silky hairs. This material is known as 'kapok' and was apparently used to stuff life preservers during the Second World War, although confusion exists as to whether the native or exotic species was used.

Kapok has also been used as stuffing in pillows, although extreme care should be taken if you smoke in bed. The Kapok fibres are highly flammable and almost explode in flame if a lit match is applied. For this reason, it is apparently good tinder to use when starting fires by friction with two sticks.

The unusual form and deciduous nature of the native Kapok deters some gardeners from including it in their collection. However, for those with rocky hill slopes and rock gardens (e.g. Castle Hill, Townsville), it would be difficult to find another tree species more suited.

(Reprinted from "The Native Gardener", newsletter of SGAP Townsville Branch, September 1998)

CEDAR BAY CHERRY
(Eugenia reinwardtiana)
Greg Calvert
Many older members of SGAP would remember a time when all the Lillypillies were known as Eugenia. During the 1980s, this was revised and the whole group were split up into Syzygium and Acmena. Only one solitary plant remained in Eugenia and that was the Cedar Bay Cherry. Of course there are still about 1000 Eugenias in other parts of the world; most familiar to many home gardeners is the Brazilian Cherry (Eugenia uniflora), or possible even the Grumichana (Eugenia brasiliensis). Our native Eugenia has also undergone a name change. Formerly Eugenia carissioides, it is now known as E. reinwardtiana.

Enough of the technical aspects now. The name Cedar Bay Cherry obviously derives from the fact that it is a common shrub at Cedar Bay in the Daintree area, but it is by no means confined to there. Indeed, they may be found anywhere from Bundaberg to the Torres Strait and into Papua New Guinea and many other countries as well. It grows in many forms and many habitats, although usually as a low bush or small tree. On off-shore islands, rocky headlands and protected beach fronts, it is possible to find the cherry growing. It also occurs along dry creek beds in association with deciduous vine thicket or dry rainforest species.

The leaves are opposite and when crushed, exude that apple sort of smell so common with members of the family Myrtaceae. The flowers are white and delicate, with a small tuft of fine stamens growing from the centre. These are produced sporadically over the plant and are followed by a sweet edible fruit.

The size, taste, colour and texture of the fruit vary to such a degree that many people are convinced that more than one species must be involved. Those from the northern rainforest and Cape York Peninsula areas have large, fleshy leaves and a bright red globular fruit, varying in size from a cherry pip to the size of a cumquat. Local vine-thicket varieties from the Townsville-Bowen area have very thin, small leaves, while the fruit is bright orange, often elongated and tear-shaped. They have more than a passing resemblance to some very nasty chillies I have eaten in the past.
The Cedar Bay Cherry is now attracting a large amount of interest from general home gardeners as well as die-hard native plant enthusiasts. Many believe that this plant has great potential for the exotic fruit and bush tucker markets because of the eating quality of the fruit.

Personally, I have about fifteen adult plants in cultivation from which I regularly gather fruit. The largest and most spectacular fruiter was one I actually purchased from the fruit tree section of the local nursery. Realising the importance of experimenting with as many different varieties as possible, I have plants in from around north Queensland and have just planted over 100 seeds of the unusual Townsville variety.

I am looking for all the variations of fruit size, seed size and flavour. Perhaps there is the possibility of grafting the superior fruiting variety from the wet tropics to the hardier rootstock of our local variety. I had considered grafting Cedar Bay Cherry onto Brazilian Cherry, but who could be so mean to a Cedar Bay Cherry?

This plant is certain to become one of the most popular native shrubs and bush tucker plants in cultivation in the Townsville area and it should be heavily promoted.