Does the kapok tree have fruit, and what kinds are there?

I. Does the kapok tree have fruit?

There are many kinds of kapok trees, some bear fruit and some do not. Among those that do, the fruit is a capsule, oblong in shape. It is 10 to 15 cm long and 4.5 to 5 cm thick. The fruit is covered with dense grayish-white long silky hairs and contains many seeds; the seeds are obovate with a very smooth surface. It usually blooms in March and April, sets fruit after flowering, and the fruit ripens in summer. Comparatively speaking, fewer of them bear fruit.

II. How many kinds of kapok trees are there?

There are very many kinds of kapok trees; about 200 or more have been discovered so far, but many varieties can only bloom and do not bear fruit. Common varieties include long-fruited kapok, tortoise-shell kapok, large-fruited kapok, silk floss tree, ceiba kapok, green-barked kapok, big-bellied kapok and African kapok, among others. Different varieties also differ in appearance, flowers, flowering period, fruit and so on, and they are not the same.

Among them, the most obvious difference between the long-fruited kapok and the kapok is that its fruit is especially long, reaching about 30 cm in length and 5.5 cm in thickness. The fruit skin is very smooth. In addition, its petals are longer and more slender than those of the kapok. It mostly blooms in March, and the fruit ripens in April. The fruit is chestnut brown, oblong-cylindrical, hairless on the surface, with 5 ridges, and splits open along the ridges when ripe.