Cyprus Vegetation

In Cyprus, a variety of the Brachychiton tree is growing - a Brachychiton populneus. Synonym: Sterculia diversifolia
This tree is up to 30 meters high with a strongly branched crown.
The trunk at the bottom of the tree almost does not have a thickening.
The leaves of this tree are oblong in shape and resemble pear leaves.
This type of brachychite is called populneus because on one tree you can find leaves of different shapes.
Cyprus has ideal conditions for Brachychiton populneus, as it tolerates drought well and prefers sun rays.
It grows well on any soil, even very poor soil.
The Brachychiton populneus blooms throughout the summer, its flowers like grapes hang from thin twigs and cover the whole tree.
I really like his bloom !!!
It is so unusual !!!
When flowering ends, these beautiful flowers form in the form of thick green pods.
And, by the beginning of winter, these green pods ripen and turn brown.
When ripe, the pods open and dense seeds become visible.
You need to be very careful when touching the seeds in the pens, as these seeds are covered with a large number of thin, almost transparent and very sharp villi-spines.
When you touch them, they stick into the skin and you will feel tingling until you remove all the villi-spines.

Now I am waiting for summer to take a photo of flowering.