![]() I won’t go into the medicinal practices, but will say that different parts of these trees - resin, sap, leaves, bark, fruit, wood and their various extracts - have been used to treat inflammation, parasites, digestive issues and just about everything else. The gumbo limbo belongs to the Burseraceae family, also known as the torchwood or frankincense family, which has loads of ethnobotanical, medicinal and cultural uses. It’s a good candidate for habitat restoration because it is fast-growing (though non-invasive) and can tolerate most soil types. Once established, it requires no irrigation at all, nor additional nutrition. While it won’t tolerate longterm saltwater inundation, it does have a moderate tolerance to salt air, making it a great coastal tree. Gumbo limbo obviously thrives in our poor, alkaline soil. Some researchers claim that trees grown from seed survive hurricane winds more often than those grown from cuttings. The small red berries appear in clusters and are an important food for many birds, including winter migrants, not to mention squirrels. Their fruit, however, is much more showy, and equally important for wildlife. Flowers may appear all year, and though not necessarily attractive to us, bees rely on them as an important food source. The gumbo limbo’s flowers grow abundantly along panicles, but are small, greenish and inconspicuous. It may seem odd to see a bare tree in South Florida, but this is normal for the gumbo limbo in late fall or spring, and the leaf shedding is usually not complete. Gumbo limbos are semi-evergreen, regenerating leaves seasonally or during drought conditions. Stocky, older individuals develop a massive trunk several feet in diameter that swells after lots of rain, three or four thick lower limbs, and a canopy nearly as wide as the tree is tall. It can attain heights of about 50 feet or more. It is found in northern South America, the Caribbean and - in its northernmost range - here in Southeast Florida. Gumbo limbo (Bursera simaruba) belongs to a family of mostly tropical trees. Though it’s a common tree in most South Florida neighborhoods, gumbo limbo is one of the most important members of our hammock ecosystem and has an interesting tale to tell. It does have some medicinal uses.It’s easy to dismiss that which is all around us, but ask anyone from outside South Florida what a gumbo limbo is, and chances are they’ll think it’s a Cajun soup. Cooking and NutritionĪll parts of the tree are resinous and may be slightly toxic, hence, not suitable for food. Seeds will be viable for 10 months if kept cool, dry and dark. Stumps will regenerate quickly and seeds germinate in moist soil. Cuttings 1.5-3 m (60-120 in) long and 10-15 cm (4-6 in) thick, spaced 3 m (117 in) apart will root easily to start a living fence. The Gumbo Limbo tree produces tiny green flowers, clusters of small fruits and seed pods. Soil types: Many types of soils are appropriate, even with some salinity.The flowers, leaves, young shoots and fruits are eaten by monkeys and occasionally by goats and cattle. The tree produces an aromatic resin used as incense, for varnish and household glue. The wood is easy to work with when making furniture. It provides quick shade and is attractive for its copper-colored thin bark that peels off to show the green underneath. The most beneficial uses of the Gumbo Limbo tree are: as a living fence, as an anchor in erosion control, as a windbreak and as a nectar source. It is tolerant to long periods of drought and is easily propagated. Gumbo Limbo is a very hardy, fast growing tree native to the West Indies and Central America.
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