Semal ( Bombax ceiba)

Semal(Bombax ceiba)This towering tree grows conical prickles on its lower trunk to discourage animals from climbing. As it matures, it extends large buttress roots that anchor its massive structure. In the flowering season, the Semal’s sweeping branches resemble a busy airport. Its large,nectar-filled flowers in bright, arresting colours of scarlet, orange, and yellow attract bees, squirrels and myriad birds. Bats visit at night when the flowers bloom. The seeds, wrapped in silky floss are shut tight inside a hard, oblong capsule. When itbursts, the seeds gush out and get dispersed far by the wind.