Couroupita Aubl.

Trees of moderate to gigantic size, the leafy twigs ordinarily stout. Leaves crowded toward the tips of the twigs, shortly petiolate, broadly obovate-cuneate and rather small for the family, entire to serrulate. Flowers in extensive sub-terminal to cauliflorous racemes and panicles. Hypanthium broadly obovoid. Calyx deeply 6-lobed, inconspicuous in fruit. Petals 6, more or less unequal, white more or less suffused with red. Androphore strongly bilaterally symmetrical, wholly fertile, produced into a prominent simply involute posterior hood, the stamens of the hood somewhat larger and with longer filaments than those of the central disc; anthers very small and ovoid, dehiscing longitudinally. Ovary 6-celled, containing numerous lateral anatropous ovules; stigma sessile, 6-radiate, inserted on a prominent round disc. Fruit a large globose indehiscent coriaceous berry, the seeds several, compressed, of moderate size, immersed in fetid pulp, the embryo differentiated and with fleshy cotyledons.

Uses & Note This genus has three Neotropical species, one of which, Couroupita guianensis, the Cannon ball tree, has been widely distributed in botanic gardens and parks for its ornamental flowers and curious cauliflorous fruits. This species is easily recognized by the large round fruits of 10-15 cm diam. borne on the branches and trunk. The androecium, bearing numerous sterile stamens, has a more open hood than that of Bertholletia and it is also over the ring of fertile stamens. The leaves of this species are grouped at the ends of the branches in a similar way to many species of Barringtonia.