Cecropia obtusifolia – Trumpet Tree

Cecropia obtusifolia - Trumpet Tree, Guarumo

Cecropia obtusifolia - Trumpet Tree, Guarumo

Cecropia obtusifolia - Trumpet Tree, Guarumo

Plant Name

Scientific Name: Cecropia obtusifolia

Common Names: Trumpet Tree, Guarumo

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial, Evergreen

Growth Habit: Tree

Hawaii Native Status: Introduced. Native to Central and South America.

Flower Color: Inconspicuous (yellowish)

Height: To 33 feet (10 m) or more in height. These trees are fast-growing but short-lived. The wood is weak, soft, and prone to rotting, which limits their height.

Description: The female flower spikes are followed by dangling, greenish, fingerlike fruit that are eaten by birds. The leaves have ruffled edges and are green above, whitish below, and palmately lobed with 9 to 13 lobes.

This pioneer species is quick to invade disturbed areas, and here in Hawaii, it is a weed in pastures and along edges and in gaps in lowland wet forests.

This is the only Cecropia species found in Hawaii. Octopus Tree (Schefflera actinophylla) is somewhat similar in general appearance, but the undersides of its leaves are green instead of white.

Classification

Kingdom: Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom: Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision: Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division: Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class: Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass: Hamamelididae
Order: Urticales
Family: Cecropiaceae – Cecropia family
Genus: Cecropia Loefl. – pumpwood
Species: Cecropia obtusifolia Bertol. – trumpet tree

More About This Plant

Hawaii County Distribution Map