Trade Names:  Ceiba, Silk Cotton, Kapcock

Origin:  The American Tropics – from Mexico, Central American and all of tropical South America.There is also ecological, botanical and cytological evidence of dispersion to western and central Africa as well as Southeast Asia mainly Indonesia and Thailand.

Uses:  Inside the seed pod is kapock which was widely used for stuffing life preservers, mattresses, seat cushions etc. The wood coming from the tree is soft and lightweight once dried and is commercially used for pulpwood and also for plywood construction. The indigenous people used the tree to make huge dugout canoes (boats) from it’s large cylindrical trucks. When quarter sawn the tree develop a desirable “lace” pattern.

Properties:  Creamy white yellow wood with interlocking grain, soft and lightweight and has a coarse texture.

Machining:  Needs a very sharp knife for peeling veneers in order to avoid fuzzy rough grain.

Seasoning:  Slow drying is needed in order to prevent and problems due to the high moisture content.