Download yellow cassia - Trees from Seeds

YELLOW CASSIA
CASSIA FISTULA
Seletar CC Carpark
Havelock Road
Seletar CC Hole 8
Botanic Gardens
The Golden Shower Tree (Cassia fistula as described by Linné) is a decideous
flowering plant in the family Fabaceae, native to southern Asia, from southern Pakistan
east through India to Myanmar, Thailand and south to Sri Lanka. Also called Indian
Laburnum (Bereksa), Rajah Kayu.
It is the national tree of Thailand.
Singapore Locations: Holland Road, Beach Road, center divider of CTE, AYE,
NParks FloraWeb:
Family: Fabaceae (Leguminosae)
Common Name: Golden Shower Tree, Indian Laburnum, Purging Cassia, Rajah Kayu, Pudding Pipe Tree,
Golden Rain Tree, Golden Shower, Bereksa, Kasia Sena, Monkey-pod Tree, Shower Of Gold
Common Name (Chinese): 猪肠豆, 阿勃勒, 腊肠树
Origin: India, Sri Lanka
Leaf Colour: Green
Leaf Texture: Smooth
Flower Colour: Yellow
Fruit Colour: Blue
Maximum Height (m): 10 - 18
Plant Shape: Irregular
Others: Featured in 1001 Garden Plants in Singapore book
Butterfly Host Plant: Catopsilia pomona pomona (Lemon Emigrant), Catopsilia scylla cornelia (Orange
Emigrant, 鎘黃遷粉蝶), Hypolycaena erylus teatus (Common Tit)
Plant Description:
Growth Form: Medium-sized tree with irregular crown. Deciduous, tree sheds leaves every 8 - 10 months,
especially
when
flowering.
Foliage: Leaves pinnately-compound, consisting of 3 - 8 pairs of opposite leaftlets. Flowers: Bright yellow,
fragrant, produced in long pendulous clusters, 30 - 50 cm in length, attractive to insects and butterflies.
Fruits: Long cylindrical pods (40-60cm), black and indehiscent when mature. Seeds covered with edible,
blackish-brown,
pungent-smelling,
sticky
sweet
pulp.
Landscaping: Usually planted along roadsides and in parks for its showy yellow flowers. Cultivation:
Easy to grow. Propgate by seeds or marcotting of large branches. Prefers well-drained soil but tolerates most
soil
Leaf
conditions.
Area
Long
Index
periods
(LAI):
of
2.5
drought
(Tree
induce
-
Open
flowering.
Canopy)
* for Green Plot Ratio
Ethnobotanical Uses: Herb & Spice (Medicinal), Timber Product
Medicinal: Nearly all parts of the plant have medicinal properties, used to treat a variety of ailments
ranging from pimples, burns, wounds and colds to cancer. Seed pods and leaves used to treat diabetes and
liver problems. Pulp from seed pod well-known for its mild laxative properties and used to relieve
constipation.
Timber: Strong wood used to make cabinets, wheels, posts, mortars and firewood.
Description
Form
It is a medium-sized tree growing to 10-20 m tall with fast growth. It has an open,
rounded to oval, light green crown, with many spreading branches. Cassia fistula is
widely grown as an ornamental plant in tropical and subtropical areas.
Hougang Ave 2
East Coast Carpark E
Leaves
The leaves are deciduous or semi-evergreen, 15-60 cm long, pinnate compound with 3-8
pairs of smooth broadly-ovate leaflets. It sheds its leaves every 8 – 10 months, especially
during flowering.
The leaflets are bright green, large and pointed, ranging between 7-21 cm long and 4-9
cm width.
Flowers
It blooms in late spring (May on the northern, November on the southern hemisphere);
flowering is profuse, with trees being covered with yellow flora, with almost no leaf
being seen.
The flowers are produced in beautiful, pendulous racemes, long drooping clusters of
flower heads, 20-50 cm long. Each flower is 3 -7 cm diameter with five yellow petals of
equal size and shape, 5 sepals and 10 stamens, 3 of which have longer stalks.
Fruits
The fruit is a legume, long smooth cylindrical pod is 30 - 60 cm long and 1.5 - 3 cm
broad. They are green when unripe and turn blackish brown when ripe. They are hard
woody and indehiscent (do not split open). They hang down like lengths of black rubber
tubings.
Each pod has numerous cells, each containing a single light brown, shiny, flattened, oval
seed. The seed is embedded in a blackish brown sweet pulp with a pungent odour,
purgative and contains anthraquinones. The seeds are poisonous.
Trunk
The trunk is grey and smooth. The bark is rich in tannins.
The wood is strong, hard, heavy and reddish in colour.
FLOWERING TIMINGS
J
Leaves
Flowers
Fruits
F
M
X
X
A
M
X
X
X
J
J
A
S
X
X
X
O
N
D
Uses
It is often planted along roadsides, parks and gardens for its fragrant showy flowers
which attract insects and butterflies. It is not recommended for dry climates. Growth for
this tree is best in full sun on well-drained soil. It is drought- and salt- tolerant, but will be
damaged by even short spells of freezing weather. It can be subject to mildew, leaf spot
and root diseases.
The strong and durable timber is suitable for cabinet work, inlay work, farm implements,
posts, wheels, motars, etc Also used as firewood.
The bark has a high tannin content for tanning leather.
All parts have curative properties and used in folk medicine to treat pimples, burns,
wounds, skin diseases, worms, cold, fever, flu, malaria, rheumatism, epilepsy, delirum,
cancer.
The pulp from the pod is a mild laxative and popular remedy for constipation.
Growing from Seeds
1.
Collect fallen pods below tree
2.
Remove the seeds from the pod
3.
Clean away all flesh from seeds
4.
Fill bottom of pot with LECA
5.
Fill with potting mix
6.
Arrange seeds on the top
7.
Cover with thin layer of potting mix
8.
Water with sprayer. Seeds germinate in 7 – 14 days.
9.
Add diluted liquid fertilizer once a month
10.
Can last for 2 to 3 years