This is Bombax ceiba, also known as cotton tree, red silk-cotton, red cotton tree, silk-cotton, and kapok. The spectacular red flowers are cooked or pickled and eaten as a vegetable in curries. They are very desirable for this use and highly sought after. The flowers can also be dried and ground into a flour used to make bread and tea. Young leaves can also be cooked and eaten as a vegetable. In desperate times, young bark can be eaten as a famine food. An edible oil from the seeds and used to make soap among other things. This tree attracts a lot of wildlife and is pollinated by birds and bees. USDA Hardiness Zones 10 to 11.