Nagalingam or Cannonball Tree

Description:

Couroupita guianensis, known by several common names, including cannonball tree, is a deciduous tree in the family Lecythidaceae, which also contains the Brazil nut (Bertholletia excelsa). Couroupita guianensis grows up to 35 meters in height. The flowers are borne in large bunches up to 80 meters long. Some trees flower profusely, until the entire trunk is buried in flowers. One tree can bear 1000 flowers per day. The large fruit, which is woody and very spherical, measuring up to 25 centimeters wide, gives the species the common name "cannonball tree". A smaller fruit contains perhaps 65 seeds, while a large one can have 550. One tree can bear 150 fruits. The fruit takes up to a year to mature in most areas, sometimes as long as 18 months. The fruit is edible, but not usually eaten by people because it can have an unpleasant smell. In photo 2 you can see the fruit behind the flowers...

Habitat:

It is native to the rainforests of Central and South America, but this one is growing in my garden in Tamil Nadu, India.

Notes:

In India the tree is sacred to Hindus, who believe its hooded flowers look like the nāga, and it is grown at Shiva temples. There are many medicinal uses for the plant. Native Amazonians use extracts of several parts of the tree to treat hypertension, tumors, pain, and inflammation. It has been used to treat the common cold, stomachache, skin conditions and wounds, malaria, and toothache. The fruit pulp is rubbed on sick dogs to cure them of mange.