Yellow-topped Trees
This time of year in western Panama, you’re likely to see trees with yellow flowers in bloom. Here in Chiriqui, we see them along the side of the Interamericana and also along the road between Dolega and David. Two species of yellow-topped trees are conspicuous in January, and each represents a different family. (A third yellow-flowered tree blooming this time of year is a living fence tree, the macano, featured earlier.)
The image on the left, a young tree, is one you’re likely to see in the drier parts of Chiriqui. The one on the right is seen in dry to very humid areas of our province.
From a distance – and certainly from these pictures that include the tree trunks – you may not be able to tell how different the flowers are. But they are. If you have binoculars, or a zoom on your camera, you’ll see the flowers of the first tree are shaped like a buttercup. The flowers of the second tree occur in big clusters, and each flower is frilly.
These are the poroporo or the buttercup tree (on the left) and the Cortez amarillo or the yellow Cortez tree (on the right).
Poroporo, the buttercup tree – Cochlospermum vitifolium
The poroporo is Cochlospermum vitifolium, a member of the Cochlospermaceae family. This tree is the only representative of its family in either Costa Rica (Zuchowski) or in Panama (Tree Atlas of Panama), but it’s not a large family in any case, consisting of only two genera and of 20-25 species.
The name of the family and the genus comes from the “…Greek cochlos (shell) and sperma (seed) in reference to the spirally twisted seeds of two species” (Dave’s botanary). One of those species with spirally twisted seeds must be the poroporo because in the one image I’ve found on the internet where you can barely make out the seeds, it is possible to see the snail-like shape.
Even more conspicuous than the seeds in this image is the fluffy white material from within the seed pod, which gives rise to another common name in English for this tree – “silk cotton” tree. Those fibers can be used for stuffing pillows.
The species name, vitifolium, means “having leaves like a grape” (Dave’s botanary). Since this is the season in which the poroporo has no leaves, I’ll refer you to the Tree Atlas of Panama where there are several leaf images.
If you like this tree, take a cutting. It will root here in Panama. The wood is soft – it can be used for paper pulp and boxes – and the bark is fibrous – it can be made into string. Or, of course, you can stuff your own pillows if you like (Zuchowski).
Tabebuia ochracea – Cortez amarillo or the yellow Cortez tree
The Cortez amarillo is Tabebuia ochraceae, a member of the Bignoniaceae – or trumpet creeper – family. By contrast to the Cochlospermaceae family, the trumpet creeper family is fairly large, with about 120 genera and about 700 species (wikipedia). The catalpa, the calabash, the jacaranda, and the spathodea (African Tulip Tree), are all members of this family of showy flowers.
The family was named after an early botanist, the Abbe Jean Paul Bignon. The genus name is the Brazilian Indian name for one of the trees in the genus, and the species name means “ochre (yellow, golden, or dull red or reddish brown) colored.” (All definitions from Dave’s botanary.)
A close relative of this tree – another species in the same genus – is Tabebuia guayacan, which will start blooming in February. In these images from the Tree Atlas of Panama,
the T. ochracea, the yellow Cortez, is on the left, and the T. guayacan, locally the guayacán, is on the right. You can see that the cluster of flowers is much looser in the guayacán than in the yellow Cortez, so look for that when you see yellow trees in bloom next month.
The pink species, Tabebuia rosea, will bloom in March. These trees are also called “oaks” or “roble” in Panama because of the strength of their wood. And all the species of Tabebuia are eye-catching enough to be used as ornamentals.
Note: Speaking of yellow flowers, the Davilla project is still on, but I’m not sure the plant is aware that it is supposed to bloom very soon. Click here for an update.
Beautiful! I’m envious that you get to enjoy such lovely blossoms while here we’re deep in snow and bare twigs. Is poroporo an indigenous word?
~Shelley
Hi Shelley,
Ah, the tropics – no fuel bills, either! Not to rub it in, of course.
I have not been able to find the origin of poroporo. The online Spanish dictionary that I use gives poro as meaning “pore,” with all the same connotations as the English word. In South America there is an additional meaning for poro – a squash in the shape of a pear. So nothing in Spanish seems to fit – maybe it is indeed an indigenous word.
Thanks for checking, mary. The reason I asked is I’ve noticed that Quechua names are often comprised of doubled words; perhaps, I thought, the indigenous language is similar in that regard.
For instance, there’s a beautiful flower that grows in the highlands of Peru called “rima rima” (Krapfia weberbauerii; Ranunculaceae). In Quechua, this means “speak, speak,” and if a child hasn’t learned to talk by a certain age, it is said that the flower should be tapped gently on the tongue or lips.
~Shelley
Shelley,
Your comments continue to enrich my knowledge and that of my few but loyal readers, and I am very grateful. Thank you!
You have given me good reason to resume and energize my quest for the origin of poroporo.
I looked for images of the Krapfia weberbauerii and found only one, here. The page is in Japanese and there are many plant images on it, but if you look for the English text Krapfia weberbauerii, you will find two images side by side of this lovely “buttercup.” Wonderful!
Mary
Mary, many thanks for your kindness and for providing this window into the neotropics.
~Shelley
Hi Mary:
I was checking the internet to see what I could find out about some of the flowering trees I see near my home in Guanacaste province in Costa Rica, and here you are.
We have about twenty Poro Poro on our three acres, which now have pretty much finished flowering. I know we have lots of Cortez in the area, but I have yet to have one pointed out to me close up. I’ll be using your picture as a reference.
I have also seen many Guayacan on the ranch where our property is. Thanks to you, I now have a name for them.
We have a couple trees that have just started blooming with clusters of small light pink flowers, which have a delicious sweet aroma. A Nicaraguan man who was helping us with some work said they are Robles. Could this be the pink version of the Guayacan you speak of? The flowers are very much smaller, though clustered in a similar way. I’ll send you a picture, if you would like. I think I would need your e-mail address, unless you can tell me another way I could send a picture.
I look forward to looking through some of your archives.
Hello Jim,
How nice to hear your experiences in Costa Rica. I envy you your field of poro poros. I really, really like them. The pink-flowering roble is probably a Tabebuia species, perhaps Tabebuia rosea. Check the images on this post:
http://ntsavanna.com/tabebuia-strength-and-beauty/
If your tree is different, leave another comment and we’ll figure out a way to identify it.
Thanks!
Mary
Nope. The flowers on my tree are much smaller and not trumpet shaped. I actually seem to have two very similar types of trees, one with light pink flowers and one with white flowers. Both have a sweet scent. I’ll take some pictures within a couple days.
How would I go about sending pictures to you or attaching them to a reply on this web?
Hi Jim,
I’ve sent you an email. After you send the images, I’ll post them here as an “update” to the post. If I can’t identify them, perhaps a reader can.
Mary