Pachira Aubl.

Overview

Pachira belongs to the family Malvaceae (formerly Bombacaceae); Kew gives its native range as Mexico to tropical America. Flora of China counts about 50 species in tropical America, with only one, the introduced P. aquatica, cultivated in China; the species WCVP accepts are listed below.

The “money tree” of plant shops is recorded as P. aquatica by Flora of China, NC State Extension and the ASPCA. WCVP also accepts P. glabra as a separate species, which Kew records as native to south-eastern and southern Brazil, while NC State’s page lists Bombax glabrum as a former name of P. aquatica. Horticultural sources draw the line between the two differently, so the identity table records both and does not decide which species the plants on sale belong to.

Classification and characters

WCVP cites Aublet’s Histoire des Plantes de la Guiane Françoise (1775) as the place of publication and sinks Bombacopsis, Carolinea and Rhodognaphalopsis, among others, as synonyms.

Flora of China describes trees, sometimes deciduous, spiny or buttressed, with palmately compound leaves of 3–11 leaflets. The bisexual flowers are solitary or in clusters of two or three in the leaf axils, with 90–1000 stamens joined into a tube at the base. The fruit is oblong to pear-shaped, woody or leathery, splitting into five valves and woolly inside, with large seeds up to 2.5 cm.

P. aquatica is a small tree 4–5 m tall (up to 18 m), with 5–11 leaflets, the central one 13–24 cm long. Its yellowish-green petals are narrowly lanceolate to thread-like, up to 15 cm long, with the upper half reflexed; the staminal tube is yellow below and red above, 13–15 cm long with the filaments. The capsule is nearly pear-shaped, 9–10 cm long, and the dark brown seeds have white spirals. It flowers from May to November and is cultivated in Guangdong, Taiwan and southern Yunnan; native to tropical America, it is now cultivated and naturalised throughout the tropics, and the seeds are eaten raw or roasted (Flora of China).

Distribution

WCVP records the genus as native to 28 TDWG botanical regions and introduced in 33 more.

BelizeBoliviaBrazil NorthBrazil NortheastBrazil SouthBrazil SoutheastColombiaCosta RicaCubaDominican RepublicEcuadorEl SalvadorFrench GuianaGuatemalaGuyanaHaitiHondurasMexico CentralMexico GulfMexico NorthwestMexico SoutheastMexico SouthwestNicaraguaPanamáPeruSurinameTrinidad-TobagoVenezuela

Introduced

BeninBrazil West-CentralBurundiCabindaCameroonCaroline Is.ChadComorosCongoDR CongoGhanaGuineaGulf of Guinea Is.Ivory CoastJamaicaLeeward Is.LiberiaMaliMarianasNew CaledoniaNigeriaPuerto RicoRwandaSenegalSierra LeoneSudan-South SudanTanzaniaUgandaVenezuelan AntillesVietnamWindward Is.ZambiaZimbabwe

Accepted species

WCVP accepts 54 species; names with × are natural hybrids. The count changes with revisions; checked 2026-10-28.

Historic plates

Plates in date order; the printed names are kept as they appear, current names are on the species pages and the topic page.

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  Pachira Aquatica

  Histoire des plantes de la Guiane Françoise · Pl. 291 · 1775
  

Pot culture and safety

Flora of China notes that potted P. aquatica is very tolerant of drought and shade and is sold in many countries as a houseplant, usually with braided stems. NC State Extension adds that the trunks are flexible enough to braid together, a practice begun in Taiwan to lock in good fortune. Indoors it usually stays at 2–2.5 m (6–8 ft); it prefers indirect light or part shade, as direct sun scorches the leaves, and 18–24 °C with good humidity; the potting mix should be moist but well drained, as standing water causes root rot; and indoor or braided plants generally do not flower.

The ASPCA lists the money tree (P. aquatica) as non-toxic to dogs, cats and horses, though eating it may cause nausea, vomiting and loose stools. NC State notes that the seeds, which contain cyclopropenoid fatty acids, are the poisonous part, and can cause mild to moderate gastrointestinal upset in cats.

Further reading

• Reference library

References

1. WCVP · World Checklist of Vascular Plants (via ChecklistBank dataset 2232) · accessed 2026-10-28
2. Kew (POWO data on the ColPlanta site) · Pachira native range
3. Flora of China vol. 12 · Pachira
4. Flora of China vol. 12 · Pachira aquatica
5. NC State Extension Plant Toolbox · Pachira aquatica
6. ASPCA Animal Poison Control · Money Tree