Cedar (Cedrela odorata) III

Brazilian cedar is a deciduous tree, which means that it loses all of its leaves; in this case, during the dry season. Most of our native trees are deciduous but what makes cedar unique is that it remain leafless for the duration of the summer. The one in the image is probably one of those beautiful green trees shown on the previous blog entry. Looking at it in its leafless state, you might think it had died. I assure you that there were days when I thought just that, but when the rains come, the trees bounce back to life. You may have rightfully come to the conclusion that the Brazilian cedar isn't a conifer. The family is Meliaceae, as is the Brazilian mahogany.