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God's own tree

The cannon ball tree has a remarkable resemblance to Shivalingam

TREE TALK The tree is often planted in parks and gardens

Cannon ball tree or `Nagalingam' is a rare but remarkable tree that grows up to six feet in girth and 50' in height. The trunk is smooth but lumpy and greyish brown in colour. The trunk is straight; the branches are short and horizontal tending to be whorled.

The trunk is covered from near the foot to a good height by flower stalks. These short and green stalks covered with flowers keep growing and hang down, bearing flowers only on the tips. The leaves grow in circular clusters at the end of the branchlets. The petiole is about an inch long and hairy.

The blade is oblongor-ovate growing to about 10" x 3" and is slightly pointed. The veins are numerous, well marked and outlined in dark green. The flower is beautiful and fancifully designed in a strange way. The inflorescence is a raceme bearing numerous flowers. The pedical is an inch in length and bears two small brots near the apex. The bud is circular, depressed, 1-1/2" in diameter and lightly covered by the overlapping petals. The green calyx has six small lobes, which are closely attached to the petals. The new leaves are light green, pleasing to the eye.

A remarkably striking tree with long woody racemes of about 5' long is loaded with large pink and white fleshy curious flowers along the trunk from the base upwards. Flowers are curiously shaped, giving the impression of a `Shivalingam' covered by the snake's hood, in form of fused stamens surrounded by the fleshy pink petals and sepals.

The tree is often planted in parks, gardens or on roadside. Propagation happens by seeds. The large brown fruit attains the size of a cannon ball, containing a mass of very sour and brownish pulp. They emit an unpleasant smell when ripe. Couroupita is the native of tropical America

CHITRA RADHAKRISHNAN

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