These candles are made from the pods of the Brazil Nut tree, one of the tallest trees in the Amazon Rainforest. Once the Brazil nuts have been harvested from the pod and sold in the local Peruvian market, the artisans transform a "waste" item, the pod, into a fine rain forest gift for you. The pods are filled with a combination of clean-burning paraffin wax and palm oil to make these colored, unscented candles.
Available in a variety of colors, these earth-friendly candles make use of the rainforest's renewable resources and create jobs for Peruvian artisans.
Handmade in Peru and fair trade imported.
The tremendous Brazil nut tree can have a trunk that can be grow to be 8 feet in diameter and can live up to 500 years. The tree has branches and leaves only at the top third of the tree, and its branches can span up to 100 feet. The waxy leaves produce a yellow orchid. This flower, when pollinated by either bees or bats, produces the fruit that contains the brazil nuts.
In South America, brazil nuts grow during the 4-month dry season that differs from region to region. The brazil nut is a hard-shelled fruit, similar to a coconut, and takes about 14 months to mature. The fruit is about 4-6 inches in diameter and can weigh up to four pounds. The shell of the fruit is about a quarter of an inch thick and contain between 12-24 nuts.
Brazil nuts are primarily harvested from wild trees during the six-month period of the rainy season. Because the brazil nut trees are so tall, harvesting the fruits consists of gathering the fruit after they fall. Once the fruit falls, it has to be gathered quickly so they are not susceptible to fungus and animals that can carry them away.
For more information on how Brazil Nuts are saving the Rainforest, see this fun video Super Nut.
