Bauhinia variegata seed
LATIN NAME: Bauhinia variegata
COMMON NAME: Orchid Tree
The orchid tree is a handsome, deciduous or semi-evergreen tree of the warm regions, and its fine, rounded, twin-lobed leaves and its abundant, fragrant, orchid-like, rose-purple or white flowers have made it one of the most beautiful of the flowering trees of the warm garden. It grows as a tree, reaching up to ten metres or more, with the upright, branching, often spreading trunk bearing the alternate, rounded, twin-lobed, heart-shaped leaves and, through the late winter and the spring, the abundant, fragrant, orchid-like, rose-purple or white, five-petalled flowers, followed by the flat, woody pods of the few hard seeds. It is a species of the flowering tree in the pea family, and it is native to the warm regions of the southern Asia, while it is grown for its beautiful flowers and its fine form, and it is known as the orchid tree.
The orchid tree belongs to the pea family, Fabaceae, and it is a species of the deciduous or semi-evergreen tree, native to the warm regions of the southern Asia, while it is grown for its beautiful flowers and its fine form, and it is known as the orchid tree. It is prized for its abundant, fragrant, orchid-like flowers and its twin-lobed leaves.
Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology
The orchid tree has a real and distinguished place in the research. It has been studied in the horticulture, since its abundant, fragrant, orchid-like flowers have made it one of the most beautiful of the flowering trees, and researchers have examined its growth, its flowering and its cultivation, while its fine, spring bloom has drawn attention in the international horticultural press as a tree of the warm garden. The plant has also been studied in the botany and the ecology, since it is a native of the warm regions of the southern Asia, and its relationships, its distribution and its role in the wild have been examined, while the ecology of the warm-forest trees has been of continuing interest, and its curious, twin-lobed leaves have been of interest to the botanists. The species has also been studied in the chemistry of the natural products and the traditional use, since the parts of the orchid tree have a history of use in the folk ways of the many lands, and researchers have examined the plant and its constituents, while the traditional uses of the orchid tree have been of continuing interest, and the plant is best appreciated as a subject of study and a beautiful flowering tree rather than a casual remedy. For a tree of such beauty, the orchid tree has a rich and continuing record of study.
Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications
Ecologically, the orchid tree is a generous tree of the garden. Its abundant, fragrant, orchid-like flowers feed the bees and the many insects, and its broad, leafy crown gives a fine, broad shade and a cover to the birds.
Its economic value is real. The orchid tree is prized for its abundant, fragrant, orchid-like flowers, and its beauty has drawn attention in the international horticultural press as a tree of the warm garden, while its fine, hard, strong wood has also been valued in the region. For a grower, the orchid tree is a rewarding and beautiful tree, and for a gardener it brings an abundant, fragrant, orchid-flowered tree to the warm garden. The seeds are easy to start — give the hard seeds a quick dip in warm water and let them cool, then sow them just below the surface of a pot of moist, free-draining soil, keep them gently watered, and they’ll be sprouting steadily, growing on into a beautiful, orchid-flowered tree.
Bauhinia variegata comes originally from the Indian sub-continent and South East Asia where it grows as a tall shrub/small tree. It flowers profusely in late Spring, then sporadically all summer. The flowers are huge orchid shaped blooms which are pink and white. The flowers are scented, this is best appreciated in warmer weather, especially towards the evening. The flowers are followed by seed pods, which slowly ripen from green to brown and go quite woody. When the pods are green they can be eaten as a vegetable in much the same way as Sugar Peas are.