Tropical Plants

We have seen so many beautiful, interesting, and strange plants here in Central America, I just had to share some with you.

  

Although not native to central America, cashew trees are quite common here as both an ornamental tree, and as a crop tree. The reddish part is called the cashew apple and can be eaten, but harvesting the nuts is tricky because of the toxic juice in the shells. 

 

 

We saw this pineapple growing in the jungle on our hike up to San Francisco Waterfall.

 

 

Just a pretty flower along the trail.

 

 

This is an immature cocoa pod. They commonly grow right on the trunk of the tree.

 

 

This flower was growing on the trunk of a tree at Izapa.

 

 

Just another beautiful flower. 

And a tree growing through a tree with aerial roots.