| Delonix regia | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Tree in full bloom (Florida Keys) | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Fabales |
| Family: | Fabaceae |
| Subfamily: | Caesalpinioideae |
| Genus: | Delonix |
| Species: | D. regia |
| Binomial name | |
| Delonix regia | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
| |
Delonix regia is a species offlowering plant in the bean familyFabaceae, subfamilyCaesalpinioideae native toMadagascar. It is noted for its fern-like leaves and flamboyant display of orange-red flowers over summer. In many tropical parts of the world it is grown as anornamental tree. It is a non-nodulatinglegume.
Although its country of origin was unknown, it had been in widespread cultivation for centuries. Finally, in 1932, a natural colony was discovered on the west coast ofMadagascar by J. Leandri.[3]
Its common names include "flame tree" (one of several species given this name),peacock flower,[4]royal poinciana,[4]flamboyant,[4]phoenix flower,[citation needed]flame of the forest.[citation needed] The namepoinciana comes from a genus it was once placed in namedPoinciana afterPhillippe de Longvilliers de Poincy, a French noble who once governed the Caribbean island ofSaint Kitts.[5]
Delonix regia is a medium-sized deciduous tree that grows to about 10 m (33 ft). The bark is light brown. Often creased at branches, it has prominentlenticels.[6] The foliage of one branch is made of 8-25 or more pairs of pinnae, each pinna is lined with 30-60 or more opposite leaflets. One leaflet is oblong with a length of 4-12 millimetres, it is dark green with a dull upper surface and a paler, greyish bottom.[7]: 466–467
The flowers are large, with four spreading scarlet or orange-red petals forming a diameter up to 8–11 cm (3–4 in) long, and a fifth upright petal called the standard, which is slightly larger and spotted with yellow and white. They appear incorymbs along and at the ends of branches.[7]: 466–467 The naturally occurring varietyflavida (Bengali:Radhachura) has yellow flowers.[8]
The pods are green and flaccid when young, then turn dark-brown and woody as they mature. They can be up to 60 cm (24 in) long and 5 cm (2 in) wide. The seeds are small, weighing around 0.4 grams (6.2 grains) on average. The compound (doubly pinnate) leaves have a feathery appearance and are a characteristic light, bright green. Each leaf is 30–50 cm (12–20 in) long with 20 to 40 pairs of primary leaflets or pinnae, each divided into 10–20 pairs of secondary leaflets or pinnules. Pollen grains are elongated, approximately 52μm in size.[citation needed]
InIndia, the trees are bare during the winter months from December to February. New leaves start to form in March-April. Flowers start to appear in April, reaching full bloom in May. Fruit pods are present for many months.[6]
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Delonix regia is endemic toMadagascar's dry deciduous forests, but has been introduced into tropical and sub-tropical regions worldwide. In the wild it isendangered, but it is widely cultivated elsewhere and is regarded as naturalised in many of the locations where it is grown.[6]
Trees are planted along streets and villages within Madagascar as an ornamental.[7]: 467 Aside this, it is present in several Southern African countries such asSouth Africa,Zimbabwe,Malawi,Zambia andNamibia.[1]
In the continental United States, it grows inSouth Florida,Central Florida,[9] in theRio Grande Valley ofSouth Texas and can be found planted as far north asHouston.Hawaii is another location where the species is grown. It also grows in humid parts ofMexico, especially in the southwest states likeCampeche,Chiapas,Oaxaca,Tabasco,Veracruz, andYucatán.
In the Caribbean it is featured in manyDominican andPuerto Rican paintings. It can also be found inBelize,The Bahamas,Costa Rica,Cuba,Haiti,Honduras,Nicaragua, theU.S. Virgin Islands,Sint Maarten,Trinidad and Tobago, theCayman Islands,Grenada,[citation needed]Jamaica,Curaçao,Dominica,Saint Vincent and the Grenadines andSaint Lucia. It is the national flower ofSt. Kitts and Nevis. It can also be found inBermuda. The town ofPeñuelas, Puerto Rico, located about 12 miles or 19 kilometers west ofPonce, is nicknamedEl Valle de los Flamboyanes ("The Valley of the Poinciana Trees"), as many flamboyant trees are found along the surroundingRío Guayanes,Río Macana, andRío Tallaboa rivers.
It grows inParaguay andBrazil.[1]
Delonix regia is planted in Mediterranean parts of Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, including thesouthern coast of Spain, theValencian coast, theCanary Islands,Lebanon,Egypt,Iran,[citation needed]Israel,Jordan,Cyprus andSaudi Arabia.
The tree is planted in India, where it is referred to as theMay-flower tree,Gulmohar orGul Mohr.[10] InWest Bengal andAssam it is calledKrishna Chura (কৃষ্ণচূড়া), while its known asNianbānā/Krushnachuṛā (ନିଆଁବାନା/କୃଷ୍ଣଚୂଡ଼ା) in Odisha. InSri Lanka it is known inSinhala as theMaara tree, although for a short while it was known as theLamaasuriya tree after Le Mesurier, the British civil servant who was responsible for introducing it as a shade tree.[11] It is also grown inKarachi,Pakistan. InMauritius andLa Réunion it announces the coming of the new year.
InBangladesh it is known as krisnachura (কৃষ্ণচূড়া). You can find this tree in various places in Bangladesh. It is found all overDhaka City and is one of the iconic symbols of the Bengali month ofBoishakh. InNepal it is known as Shirish.
InMyanmar, where it is calledsein pan (စိန်ပန်း), the time of flowering is March in the south and early to late April in the north. It is planted in gardens and as a roadside tree. In Myanmar, this tree is a sign of theThingyan Festival (13–16/17 April). In thePhilippines, its flowering signals the imminent arrival of themonsoon rains. It also grows inThailand andIndonesia. InVietnam it is called "phoenix flower" and mostly grows inHaiphong. InMalaysia, it is called "Semarak", which used to be the name of a street in the country's capital city,Kuala Lumpur, now renamed asJalan Sultan Yahya Petra where one of the oldest and highest ranked Malaysian universities, theUniversity of Technology Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur campus is located. "Semarak Api" is also the official flower of theSepang district.
It grows in SouthernChina such as inHong Kong. It is the official tree inTainan,Taiwan;Xiamen,Fujian Province, andShantou,Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China.National Cheng Kung University, a university located in Tainan, included royal poinciana on its emblem.
It is very widely grown in NorthernAustralia, in the southern extremes previously limited to South EastQueensland where it is a popular street tree in the suburbs ofBrisbane. It blooms successfully inSydney and other parts ofNew South Wales.[12]
It grows inGuam, and is the official tree of theCommonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
The royal poinciana requires a tropical or near-tropical climate, but can tolerate drought and salty conditions. It thrives in open, free-draining sandy or loamy soil enriched with organic matter. The tree does poorly in heavy or clay soils, and flowers more profusely when kept slightly dry.
The royal poinciana is most commonly propagated by seeds. Seeds are collected, soaked in warm water for at least 24 hours, and planted in warm, moist soil in a semi-shaded, sheltered position. In lieu of soaking, the seeds can also be "nicked" or "pinched" (with a small pair of scissors or nail clipper) and planted immediately. These two methods allow moisture to penetrate the tough outer casing, stimulating germination. The seedlings grow rapidly and can reach 30 cm (12 in) in a few weeks under ideal conditions.
Less common, but just as effective, is propagation by semi-hardwood cuttings. Branches consisting of the current or last season's growth can be cut into 30 cm (12 in) sections and planted in a moist potting mixture. This method is slower than seed propagation (cuttings take a few months to root) but is the preferred method for ensuring new trees are true to form. As such, cuttings are a particularly common method of propagation for the rarer yellow-flowering variety of the tree.
In addition to its ornamental value, it is a useful shade tree in tropical conditions, because it usually grows to a modest height (mostly 5 m or 15 ft, but it can reach a maximum height of 12 m or 40 ft) but spreads widely, and its dense foliage provides full shade. In areas with a marked dry season, it sheds its leaves during the drought, but in other areas it is virtually evergreen.
In the Indian state ofKerala, royal poinciana is calledkaalvarippoo (കാൽവരിപ്പൂവ്,kālvarippūv) which means "the flower ofCalvary". There is a popular belief amongSaint Thomas Christians of Kerala that whenJesus was crucified, there was a small royal poinciana tree nearby hisCross. It is believed that the blood of Jesus Christ was shed over the flowers of the tree and this is how the flowers of royal poinciana got a sharp red color.[13] It is also known asVaaga in many areas of Kerala.
Its blossom is the national flower ofSt. Kitts and Nevis,[14] and in May 2018 the royal poinciana was adopted by the city ofKey West as its official tree.[15] Known locally assemarak api,Delonix regia is the city flower of Sepang,Selangor, Malaysia.[16]
In Vietnam, this is a popular urban tree and is calledPhượng vỹ, or "phoenix's tail". Its flowering season is May–July, which coincides with the end of the school year in Vietnam. Because of this timing, the flower of poinciana is sometimes called the "pupil's flower". The tree is also commonly found on school grounds in Vietnam; however, after several incidents where a tree fell onto students, with one student killed, schools started cutting down or severely pruning the trees.[17]Hải Phòng is nicknamedThành phố hoa phượng đỏ ("City of red poinciana").
The song "Poinciana" was inspired by the presence of this tree inCuba.[18][19]
In South India, these trees are common in schools, so children used to play with the stamens of the bud.[20][21]
