Castilla (plant)

Castilla (sometimes incorrectly spelled Castilloa) is a genus of three species of large trees in the family Moraceae, native to Central and South America.

[3][4] Castilla species are monoecious or dioecious trees up to 40 meters tall, with buttressed trunks and abundant white latex of commercial value.

[2] Castilla species exhibit a phenomenon known as cladoptosis, the regular shedding of branches.

[6] Castilla elastica is a weedy tree which has become invasive in areas where it has been introduced, such as in Tanzania and the South Pacific.

The pre-Columbian MesoAmericans used the latex of this plant to make a ball used in a ceremonial game.

The Panama rubber tree Castilla elastica , showing the scar where a branch has dropped. A recently fallen branch is posed at right