gumbo limbo tree medicinal uses parasites

Hexane extracts of the leaves have been shown to possess anti-inflammatory properties in animal tests. The resin is used as a treatment for gout, while the leaves are brewed into a medicinal tea. Gumbo-limbo's rapid growth, ease and low cost of propagation, and ecological versatility makes it highly recommended as a 'starter' tree in reforestation, even of degraded habitat, and it performs much better overall in such a role than most exotic species. Given the eagerness with which some birds seek out the arils, it may be that they contain lipids or other compounds useful to humans in order for these to be exploited, however, they would probably have to be synthetically produced, because although the crop of a single tree can be very large (up to or even exceeding 15,000 fruits, translating into a raw lipid yield of over 200 grams per harvest), individual seeds are small and cumbersome to harvest. This creates the opportunity to attract such species to residential areas for bird watching, and to reduce the competition for gumbo-limbo seeds in an undisturbed habitat which rarer local resident birds might face. Many migrant species will utilize gumbo-limbo trees that are in human-modified habitat, even in settlements. It is an especially important local food source for vireos such the red-eyed vireo when ripe fruit are abundant. Local residents such as the masked tityra, bright-rumped attila, black-faced grosbeak and, in Hispaniola, palmchat, are particularly fond of gumbo-limbo fruit, as are migrants like the Baltimore oriole or the dusky-capped flycatcher. The arils are an important source of food for birds, including many winter migrants from North America.

It is rather brittle, though the trunk is used in Haiti to make drums and as firewood, and the tree's resin, called chibou, cachibou or gomartis, is used as glue, varnish and incense. Gumbo-limbo wood is suitable for light construction. However, it has been noted in Central America that posts do not produce a tap root, only side roots, thus questioning the real value of wind protection as such fence posts would not be as sturdy as a true, naturally occurring sapling. They may be planted to serve as wind protection of crops and roads, or as living fence posts, and if simply stuck into good soil, small branches will readily root and grow into sizeable trees in a few years. Gumbo-limbo is also considered one of the most wind-tolerant trees, and it is recommended as a rugged, hurricane-resistant species in South Florida. It grows rapidly and is well adapted to several kinds of habitats, which include salty and calcareous soils (however, it does not tolerate boggy soils).

Gumbo-limbo is a very useful plant economically and ecologically. Gumbo Limbo, known as Copperwood in Jamaica on the grounds of Rose Hall, Montego Bay, Jamaica.

Gumbo limbo tree medicinal uses parasites