|
|
Family: Ochnaceae
candelabro, more...Membrillo de montaña
[Cespedesia macrophylla Seem.] |
Description: A medium-sized tree with very large leaves. The trunk can be unbranched, or have a few large branches that rise vertically (like additional trunks). Leaves are close to a meter long and 20-30 cm wide, narrower at the base, with a broad, rounded tip. They are tightly clustered at the top of the trunk(s), in a palm-like form. The leaf cluster is held precisely, with the upper leaves pointing upward, the lower ones downward; the leaves do not droop. New leaves are deep red, so at a distance, it looks like a tree in flower, but they quickly turn green. Look closely at the leaf underside: the tertiary veins are neatly arranged in parallel. Cespedesia is seldom seen as a juvenile. Reproduction: Unlike the red leaves, the flowers are brilliant yellow, and are held in spikes on top of the leaves. They are produced in July (Central Panama), after the new leaves have turned green. Fruits... Distribution: Cespedesia is primarily a species of forest clearings and roadsides. Inside the forest, it is rare. It is also restricted to wetter areas: the Caribbean coast and lower foothills. In Central Panama, it is very common along roadsides, and its abundance can be used as a guide to the moister climates: common on outer half of Pipeline Rd. and other forested roads near the Caribbean, scarce around Gamboa, absent near the Pacific coast except on the mountains. Similar Species: The large leaves clustered at the top are easy to recognize, except for the very similar LK gustsu Gustavia superba LK2. In fact, a paper published in the eminent journal Science in the early 1970s confused the two species. The key feature is how leaves droop in Gustavia but not in Cespedesia. When leaves can be examined closely, Gustavia lacks the fine, parallel tertiary venation visible on the underside in Cespedesia. Additionally, Gustavia lacks red leaves and has completely different flowers, but that only helps occasionally, at the right time of year. Descripción: Árbol de 5 a 25 m de alto. Tronco con raíces fúlcreas y rebrotes en la base. Corteza exterior gris. Ramitas terminales robustas y con cicatrices de las hojas que han caído. Hojas simples y alternas, agrupadas en los extremos apicales de las ramas, de 20-100 x 10-25 cm, obovadas o espatuladas, con ápice obtuso o agudo, bordes dentados y base decurrente, nervaduras secundarias rectas y paralelas. Las hojas jóvenes son ligeramente rojizas o rojas. Estípulas numerosas y de color marrón castaño, agrupadas y concentradas en los ápices de las ramitas. Pecíolo de 0.5-1 cm de largo y pulvinado en la base. Inflorescencias en panículas terminales grandes, excediendo las hojas. Flores amarillas y con estambres numerosos. Frutos en cápsulas elipsoidales, de 4-7 cm de largo, verdes, tornándose marrón o negros y dehiscentes al madurar. Semillas aladas. Datos Ecológicos: La especie crece a bajas o medianas elevaciones, en bosques húmedos o muy húmedos. En Panamá se encuentra en las provincias de Bocas del Toro, Coclé, Colón, Darién, Panamá, Veraguas y la comarca de Guna Yala. Común en bosques lluviosos del Caribe en Panamá, pero rara o ausente en bosques secos del pacífico. Florece y fructifica de febrero a septiembre. Las flores son visitadas por moscas, hormigas, abejas y otros insectos. Las semillas son dispersadas por el viento. Especies Parecidas: A menudo se confunde con LK gustsu Gustavia superba LK2 , pero G. superba no tiene estípulas, las flores son rosadas y los frutos son globosos. Usos: Las hojas se emplean para fabricar arreglos florales en fiestas religiosas. La madera se utiliza en construcciones rurales. |
|