Bentham'S Hevea

Description

H. benthamiana is a medium-sized tree growing to around 27 m (90 ft), often with a narrow crown and a swollen, bottle-like trunk; these features seem to be a response to periodic flooding because they do not occur in cultivated trees. This tree is deciduous, shedding its old foliage before stubby "winter shoots" develop. This may be a response to the fungal leaf diseases that readily occur in the constantly humid environment. The leaves have three elliptical leaflets which have a golden-brown pubescence on the underside.