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Enterolobium cyclocarpum
Enterolobium cyclocarpum, commonly known as conacaste, guanacaste, caro caro, devil's ear tree, monkey-ear tree, or elephant-ear tree, is a species of flowering tree in the family Fabaceae, that is native to tropical regions of the Americas, from central Mexico south to northern Brazil (Roraima) and Venezuela. It is known for its large proportions, expansive, often spherical crown, and curiously shaped seedpods. The abundance of this tree, especially in Guanacaste Province, Costa Rica, where it is prized for the shady relief it provides from the intense sun, coupled with its immensity, have made it a widely recognized species. It is the national tree of Costa Rica.
In North America, it is often called elephant-ear tree, due to the shape of the seedpods. Other common names include devil's ear and earpod tree, parota, and orejón (Spanish) or'huanacaxtle (Nahuatl). In El Salvador, it is known as conacaste. In the Yucatán peninsula, it is known by the Mayan name, pich. In Panama, it is known as a corotú.
Source:
The guanacaste is a medium-sized to large tree, growing to 25–35 m (82–115 ft) tall, with a trunk up to 3.5 m (11 ft) in diameter. Unusual in a tree of these proportions, buttresses are completely lacking. The bark is light gray, with prominent dark reddish-brown, vertical fissures. In young trees, these fissures are closer together. and their confluence lends a characteristic reddish hue to the bark of guanacaste saplings. Older specimens often present broken, chipped, or scarred bark.
The crown is broad and widely spreading. The height at which branches first occur along the trunk – as well as the overall tree shape – vary considerably among individuals and are habitat-dependent characteristics. Frequently, guanacaste trees grow as single specimens in a sunny pasture. Under these conditions, massive, extended, horizontal limbs emerge low on the boles, forming giant, hemispherical, widely spreading crowns. In the forest (where competition for light is intense), trees tend to become taller, and branching occurs at a higher level. Tree forms then become somewhat narrower, though crowns are still rounded, and hemispherical shapes are maintained by those that have reached the canopy.
The alternate leaves are bipinnate compound, 15–40 cm (5.91–15.75 in) long and 17 cm (6.69 in) broad with a 2–6 cm (0.79–2.36 in) petiole bearing four to 15 pairs of pinnae, each pinna with 40–70 leaflets; the leaflets are slender, oblong, 8–15 mm (0.315–0.591 in) long by 2–4 mm (0.079–0.157 in) wide. Near its base, the twiggy petiole bears a small, raised, oval gland. The leaves are confined to the outer shell of the crown, yet they are plentiful enough to make it moderately dense and green. The guanacaste is evergreen, or briefly deciduous for 1–2 months during the dry season. Most foliage is shed in December, at the start of the dry season. In late February, a growth surge is initiated that re-establishes a fresh, thick crown by April.
Concurrent with the leaves' renewal is the appearance of globular inflorescences (3 cm (1.18 in)) in the axils of the new leaves. Supported by a long pedestal (4 cm (1.57 in)), each spherical white head – composed of about 50 individual flowers – sports thousands of thin, filamentous stamens as its major feature. The blossoms themselves each consist of about 20 stamens and a single pistil, bound together at the base by a short, green, tubular corolla and an even shorter calyx, just 5 mm (0.197 in) long altogether. Guanacaste flowers are very fragrant, and during intense flowering periods, their odor permeates the air for many meters in all directions. In Manuel Antonio National Park near Quepos, Costa Rica, flowering lasts from late February to early April.
Surprisingly, no obvious fruiting activity immediately follows the decline of the blossom. Rather, 9–10 months pass before small, green pods first appear high in the crown by December. They reach full size by February and finally begin to ripen in March – a full year after flowering has ceased. Fruit ripening lasts from March to April, as the green pods turn brown in the guanacaste crown and are slowly shed. Vigorous trees produce large crops on a nearly annual basis. In June, guanacaste seedlings can already be seen, germinating in the moist soil of the early rainy season.
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Enterolobium cyclocarpum
Enterolobium cyclocarpum, commonly known as conacaste, guanacaste, caro caro, devil's ear tree, monkey-ear tree, or elephant-ear tree, is a species of flowering tree in the family Fabaceae, that is native to tropical regions of the Americas, from central Mexico south to northern Brazil (Roraima) and Venezuela. It is known for its large proportions, expansive, often spherical crown, and curiously shaped seedpods. The abundance of this tree, especially in Guanacaste Province, Costa Rica, where it is prized for the shady relief it provides from the intense sun, coupled with its immensity, have made it a widely recognized species. It is the national tree of Costa Rica.
In North America, it is often called elephant-ear tree, due to the shape of the seedpods. Other common names include devil's ear and earpod tree, parota, and orejón (Spanish) or'huanacaxtle (Nahuatl). In El Salvador, it is known as conacaste. In the Yucatán peninsula, it is known by the Mayan name, pich. In Panama, it is known as a corotú.
Source:
The guanacaste is a medium-sized to large tree, growing to 25–35 m (82–115 ft) tall, with a trunk up to 3.5 m (11 ft) in diameter. Unusual in a tree of these proportions, buttresses are completely lacking. The bark is light gray, with prominent dark reddish-brown, vertical fissures. In young trees, these fissures are closer together. and their confluence lends a characteristic reddish hue to the bark of guanacaste saplings. Older specimens often present broken, chipped, or scarred bark.
The crown is broad and widely spreading. The height at which branches first occur along the trunk – as well as the overall tree shape – vary considerably among individuals and are habitat-dependent characteristics. Frequently, guanacaste trees grow as single specimens in a sunny pasture. Under these conditions, massive, extended, horizontal limbs emerge low on the boles, forming giant, hemispherical, widely spreading crowns. In the forest (where competition for light is intense), trees tend to become taller, and branching occurs at a higher level. Tree forms then become somewhat narrower, though crowns are still rounded, and hemispherical shapes are maintained by those that have reached the canopy.
The alternate leaves are bipinnate compound, 15–40 cm (5.91–15.75 in) long and 17 cm (6.69 in) broad with a 2–6 cm (0.79–2.36 in) petiole bearing four to 15 pairs of pinnae, each pinna with 40–70 leaflets; the leaflets are slender, oblong, 8–15 mm (0.315–0.591 in) long by 2–4 mm (0.079–0.157 in) wide. Near its base, the twiggy petiole bears a small, raised, oval gland. The leaves are confined to the outer shell of the crown, yet they are plentiful enough to make it moderately dense and green. The guanacaste is evergreen, or briefly deciduous for 1–2 months during the dry season. Most foliage is shed in December, at the start of the dry season. In late February, a growth surge is initiated that re-establishes a fresh, thick crown by April.
Concurrent with the leaves' renewal is the appearance of globular inflorescences (3 cm (1.18 in)) in the axils of the new leaves. Supported by a long pedestal (4 cm (1.57 in)), each spherical white head – composed of about 50 individual flowers – sports thousands of thin, filamentous stamens as its major feature. The blossoms themselves each consist of about 20 stamens and a single pistil, bound together at the base by a short, green, tubular corolla and an even shorter calyx, just 5 mm (0.197 in) long altogether. Guanacaste flowers are very fragrant, and during intense flowering periods, their odor permeates the air for many meters in all directions. In Manuel Antonio National Park near Quepos, Costa Rica, flowering lasts from late February to early April.
Surprisingly, no obvious fruiting activity immediately follows the decline of the blossom. Rather, 9–10 months pass before small, green pods first appear high in the crown by December. They reach full size by February and finally begin to ripen in March – a full year after flowering has ceased. Fruit ripening lasts from March to April, as the green pods turn brown in the guanacaste crown and are slowly shed. Vigorous trees produce large crops on a nearly annual basis. In June, guanacaste seedlings can already be seen, germinating in the moist soil of the early rainy season.