Tree that produces summertime 'snow' in UPLB deemed a public hazard by experts

It might be time to say goodbye to the iconic kapok tree at the University of the Philippines Los Banos (UPLB).

The kapok tree (Ceiba pentandra) has long since been valued by the school and its students, as it annually causes a shower of fuzzy white cotton during summer. The "snowfall" even draws curious visitors to the campus.

However, tree experts have deemed the tree hazardous to life and property, UPLB said in an article posted on its website.

Dr. Armando M. Palijon, a retired faculty member of the College of Forestry and Natural Resources (CFNR), assessed the tree and said it might have been hit by lightning, causing its health to deteriorate.

This made it "attractive" to insects and decaying microorganisms, the post said.

"Among these are boring insects that bore into and, in the process, produce powder from the tree," it added.

Palijon recommended that the road where the tree stood be secured, and the tree itself be cut down.

After a followup assessment by a team from the Department of Forest Biological Sciences of CFNR, as well as a third-party investigation, it was confirmed that the tree has "deteriorated and poses a hazard and risk to life and property."

The post added that "anecdotal observations have also pointed to lesser 'snowfall' from the tree last summer."

"It seems [the tree] is now bidding the University goodbye," it said. "Is it the end to this once-glorious Kapok tree that has since been reduced into a sickly, old tree?"

"Difficult as it may seem, UPLB needs to make the painful decision to prevent damage the tree might cause." —JCB, GMA News