Medicinal value of gumbo limbo tree1/17/2024 Gumbo-limbo wood is suitable for light construction. However, it has been noted in Central America that posts do not produce a tap root, only side roots, thus questioning the real value of wind protection as such fence posts would not be as sturdy as a true, naturally occurring sapling. They may be planted to serve as wind protection of crops and roads, or as living fence posts, and if simply stuck into good soil, small branches will readily root and grow into sizeable trees in a few years. Gumbo-limbo is also considered one of the most wind-tolerant trees, and it is recommended as a rugged, hurricane-resistant species in South Florida. It grows rapidly and is well adapted to several kinds of habitats, which include salty and calcareous soils. Gumbo-limbo is a very useful plant economically and ecologically. Birds also seek out the fruit to feed on the aril, which, though small, is rich in lipids. Ripe capsules dehisce or are cracked open by birds. Both ripe and unripe fruits are borne quite loosely on their stems and can spontaneously detach if the tree is shaken. ![]() The fruit is a small three-valved capsule encasing a single seed which is covered in a red fatty aril of 5–6 mm diameter. The tree yields some ripe fruit year-round, but the main fruiting season is March and April in the northern part of the plant's range. The gumbo-limbo is comically referred to as the tourist tree because the tree's bark is red and peeling, like the skin of sunburnt tourists, who are a common sight in the plant's range. The bark is shiny dark red, and the leaves are spirally arranged and pinnate with 7-11 leaflets, each leaflet broad ovate, 4–10 cm long and 2–5 cm broad. ![]() ![]() ''Bursera simaruba'' is a small to medium-sized tree growing to 30 meters tall, with a diameter of one meter or less at 1.5 meters above ground.
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