Hura crepitans, the Sandbox tree

[buzzmonkey]

While in Key West this past weekend, I was really impressed by the huge, old Sandbox trees I saw all over town. I think they are easily one of the most beautiful shade trees available for South Florida, but they just aren't super popular. Maybe it's the thorny trunks and limbs or the caustic sap, or the exploding fruit which give rise to the name "Dynamite tree" that keep them being grown more commonly. Anyway, I love 'em, so here are a few shots that I hope capture some of their appeal:

[buzzmonkey]

And a few more...

[buzzmonkey]

And here's the state champion up here in Broward County at Flamingo Gardens in Davie:

[BigFrond]

Nice tree. It's too big for the average yard. It's not a good tree for public sidewalk as you can see, plus "exploding dynamite" seeds can trip many folks and can be annoying lawsuits.

[buzzmonkey]

Yeah, I suppose it is fairly limited in its applicability, though they are planted all over Key West in surprisingly tight spaces (as are Ceiba pentandra so maybe this isn't a winning argument). Are they grown in SoCal?

[BigFrond]

To tell you the truth, I have. Ever seen one over here. We are loaded with eucalyptus and Austrailian boxwood. I would tke one of those over all of the two type of trees I mentioned.

[buzzmonkey]

I think I may have seen one at the San Diego Zoo, but it's all a blur really.

[Eric in Orlando]

Those are cool trees. There was one planted up here at Disney's Animal Kingdom. I haven't been there in a couple years, wonder how its growing.

[Kostas]

Love it! Need to keep an eye for them next time i visit Florida as i would love to grow them here!

[The Silent Seed]

Thanks for sharing! It's nice to see mature specimens! I have a handful of seedlings growing fast here. I had no idea they were thorny. I always like seeing old gnarly specimen trees of the youngsters I am growing!

[buzzmonkey]

Just to show the thorniness..here are two photos I took in Iquitos, Peru where this species grows as a canopy or emergent tree:

[Kostas]

Very very beautiful, better than Ceiba!

[The Silent Seed]

Love it even more now! Wonder when mine will start developing the thorns.