Clusia celiae

Native to Colombia’s Andes and Magdalena Valley, it is a tree that can reach about 50 feet. Its thick young branches contain abundant white latex. The opposite leaves are broad and somewhat leathery, with rounded tips, tapered bases, and broad, slightly winged stalks.

Male flowers grow singly or in small clusters at branch tips. Their five or six broad, waxy white petals surround a raised, fleshy central column bearing several rows of strongly curved stamens. Male and female flowers occur on separate plants. The succulent, latex-rich fruit capsules are rounded to elliptical, with five compartments containing numerous seeds. Photographed in Los Estoraques, Colombia.