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Removing nature's silky red blanket

 
Greg Henderson, a worker for TNT Commercial Ground Maintenance of St. Petersburg, rakes blooms from a mature Bombax ceiba next to the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, on Monday. The tree, commonly known as a red silk cotton tree, blooms once a year for about six weeks and produces capsules that contain cotton-like fibers. The tree is widely planted in China, Indonesia and Taiwan. “We’ve been cleaning up after this tree for 15 years,” said Henderson. “It’s a really beautiful sight when the tree covers the lawn with its red blooms, but they can kill the grass.”
Greg Henderson, a worker for TNT Commercial Ground Maintenance of St. Petersburg, rakes blooms from a mature Bombax ceiba next to the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, on Monday. The tree, commonly known as a red silk cotton tree, blooms once a year for about six weeks and produces capsules that contain cotton-like fibers. The tree is widely planted in China, Indonesia and Taiwan. “We’ve been cleaning up after this tree for 15 years,” said Henderson. “It’s a really beautiful sight when the tree covers the lawn with its red blooms, but they can kill the grass.”
Published Feb. 19, 2013