This started growing in a flower bed in my yard. I left it because the leaves are nice but now I'm worried that it is some type of tree that will take over or a weed that will do the same. Anyone recognize it? Remember, I'm in a tropical zone with no cold periods.

It looks like some species of schefflera to me.

It looks much like Manihot esculenta or Casava, Tapioca .. there's more than one species.

http://www.starrenvironmental....

However, the leaf veins seem to reach the leaf margins on that and the leaves don't look to separate at the leaf base.

Oldfieldia africana is in Euphorbiaceae and has similar venation, could be something in Euphorbiaceae.

http://www.liberianfaunaflora....

http://luirig.altervista.org/f...

Ceiba pentandra the Kapok tree .. veins look good.

http://www.discoverlife.org/mp...

My first thought was Manihot esculenta too but I'm not really sure. Janet is our resident expert here so I'd go with her identifications!

If you do pull it up, there are photo's for comparison of roots of the Cassava on this page: http://www.floridata.com/ref/m...

I agree that it probably isn't manihot escuentla (although that would be the best outcome) because the leaves are separated all the way down and don't join at the base.

Seeing the Ceiba on your list got my attention. They are native here and they are considered sacred, the Maya will build around them rather than cut them down. So, I ran outside to look for spines on the trunk, a ceiba when it is young will have them. Yes, there are small thorns protruding from the trunk so I'm pretty sure it is a Ceiba. I have to pull it out. They get huge here, with trunks over 10' in diameter!! Not in my back yard.

a close up of the tiny spines.



Thank you so much. I shudder to think how hard it would be to remove it if it got any bigger. Plus, it is right next to my pond and the roots could break into the pond. Going out now to up root it.

Janet gets it again! Impressive!

Pretty tree and I love the looks of the trunks on the ones pictured at the Wikipedia site: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C...

They sure do get big!!

Yes, they get quite large. Here's a pic from 2005 of our 27' RV parked next to one near Palenque in Chiapas, the Ceiba is the largest tree on the left of the RV in the picture.




I had to use a shovel to get it out, the tap root was already heading down quite a ways. The Maya believe that the roots of the tree lead to the underworld and the tall, straight trunk to the heavens. That's all good, but not in my back yard

Wow, I can only imagine how much work it took to get that thing out of there! I don't blame you, I wouldn't want one in my yard either!

Good job on the correct ID of that tree Janet. I am so grateful we have you here at ATP and can count on your expertise in identifying so many plants! You truly are an asset to us all!

Thank you Lin.

I'm really not that much of an expert! I used leaf shape and google images to get that one, but that's giving away 'trade secrets'.

I have developed a good eye for detail, possibly due to my bug interest.

Thank you Janet, I've been amazed and enthralled by your IDs since the beginning. It was good of Lin to remind us to thank you and to appreciate what a gift you are to the community. If I could bring myself to get closer to the multitude of bugs around here, I'd give you some of those to ID.

I do have a bug story. We were in Belize on the western side very near the Guatemala border. It's quite tropical, high canopy jungle where it hasn't been disturbed and low scrub jungle where it has. We were in an agricultural area, pastures all around us. One night we got home late and decided to dump the RV tanks in the dark, never a good idea. We're out there with the flashlights when my light goes over my partner's shoe and I see this huge spider on the laces. I'm trying not to freak her out so I tell her stamp her foot, over and over. She's getting nervous, she stamps and stamps and finally I tell her to just push that shoe off with the other foot and run. After we got over freaking out inside the RV with me making the spider larger with every telling, we went back out to finish and get her shoe. No sign of the spider. The next day I describe it to the groundsman and he said it was dangerous and good we didn't get bit. He said (and here is where I wonder if anything this horrid could be true) that this spider bites horses around the top of their hoof and lays its eggs. The eggs cause the whole hoof to rot and fall off. EWWWW... I've never forgotten that story, it still gives me the creeps. Could it be true?

Janet: You may not be an expert in your own mind but to many of us here, you are our expert. It takes a lot of patience (which you obviously have) to take the time to check leaf shape, size etc. and then go searching for an exact match. I truly appreciate your efforts!

Jonna: I read something like that regarding a spider a few years ago and it turned out to be a hoax. From what I know, the most venomous spider in Guatemala is one we find here in Florida; The Brown Recluse Spider. In Guatemala it's called the Fiddleback Spider ... bad arachnid! We have a friend who was bitten by one years ago and ended up requiring surgery!

You're too kind, I'm just an ID nutter.

Recluse spiders, there's 4 Loxosceles species listed for Guatemala on Wiki, I don't know if there might be others.

The only one listed for Belize is Loxosceles yucatana, it's also in Guatemala.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R...

http://research.amnh.org/oonop...

Was it an orange colour?

It's a cave dweller, and isn't supposed to be dangerous to humans (found on a forum)

http://www.belizeforum.com/bel...

http://v2.boldsystems.org/view...

The Brown Recluse Spider is only in North America Lin. The bite can be nasty!

http://www.pearsonpond.com/Bro...

http://www.malevolentdesign.or...

http://www.tricopest.com/reclu...

If it was big, could it have been a Tarantula?

http://biological-diversity.in...