Bauhinia championii Seeds | Champion’s Bauhinia
LATIN NAME: Bauhinia championii
COMMON NAME: Champion’s Bauhinia
Plant Profile
Bauhinia championii — Champion’s Bauhinia — is a species with genuine garden merit. While it flowers, it feeds a quiet procession of bees and hoverflies. For the gardener, the sum of these traits is a plant that is easy to live with.
Science & Biotechnology
Within the Bauhinia group, Bauhinia championii is of continuing interest to researchers working on plant diversity, seed biology and the selection of improved garden forms. Its root has also been used in traditional Chinese medicine, particularly for joint and rheumatic complaints, and phytochemical research has examined compounds behind this traditional application. Centuries of cultivation have left a detailed record of how it grows and behaves.
Uses & Benefits
Champion’s Bauhinia works well in borders, containers and dedicated beds. Champion’s Bauhinia root has a traditional history of use in Chinese herbal medicine for rheumatic and joint complaints, and as with any medicinal plant, appropriate use is best discussed with a qualified herbalist. As an ornamental, its unusual climbing habit within genus gives it a distinctive role as a Bauhinia-family vine for trellises, quite different from tree forms more typically associated with the genus. Once it has settled, the workload drops to almost nothing.
Orchid trees are beloved ornamentals, and in India the leaves and bark have Ayurvedic records for thyroid and blood sugar support, now under laboratory study. The flower buds are also eaten as a vegetable in parts of Asia.
Growing from Seed
Champion’s Bauhinia is one of those generous plants that come along well from seed. Nick or lightly sand hard seed coat and soak it in warm water overnight before sowing into a loose, well-drained mix. Bright light suits young plant well, and a support should be provided as it establishes, since this species will climb rather than grow as an upright shrub or tree. Use a fine, free-draining seed compost, scatter the seed evenly, cover it lightly and hold it just moist in good light. Pot the young plants on as they grow, harden them off gradually, and plant them into their final positions when sturdy.
Our Take
Once established, Champion’s Bauhinia largely looks after itself. Champion’s Bauhinia has real presence in the garden without demanding much in return. It is generous with beginners and their occasional misjudgements.
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