4032 x 6048 px | 34,1 x 51,2 cm | 13,4 x 20,2 inches | 300dpi
Data acquisizione:
10 maggio 2010
Altre informazioni:
The tree's vivid red/vermilion/orange/yellow flowers and bright green foliage make it an exceptionally striking sight. The Royal Poinciana is endemic to Madagascar, where it is found in the Madagascar dry deciduous forests. In the wild it is endangered, but it is widely cultivated elsewhere. In addition to its ornamental value, it is also a useful shade tree in tropical conditions, because it usually grows to a modest height 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. Flower, leaves & pods in Kolkata, West Bengal, India.The flowers are large, with four spreading scarlet or orange-red petals up to 8 cm long, and a fifth upright petal called the standard, which is slightly larger and spotted with yellow and white. The naturally occurring variety flavida has yellow flowers. Seed pods are dark brown and can be up to 60 cm long and 5 cm wide; the individual seeds, however, are small, weighing around 0.4 g on average. The compound leaves have a feathery appearance and are a characteristic light, bright green. They are doubly pinnate: Each leaf is 30-50 cm long and has 20 to 40 pairs of primary leaflets or pinnae on it, and each of these is further divided into 10-20 pairs of secondary leaflets or pinnules. The Royal Poinciana requires a tropical or near-tropical climate, but can tolerate drought and salty conditions. It is very widely grown in the Caribbean, Africa, Northern Australia (as far south as South east Queensland, although in sheltered micro climates it can be successfully grown in some areas of Sydney), Hong Kong, the Canary Islands, Thailand, Taiwan and southern China, and is also the city tree of Tainan, Taiwan and Xiamen, Fujian Province, and People's Republic of China. National Cheng Kung University, a university located in Tainan, put Royal Poinciana on its emblem. It also grows throughout southern Brazil, with or
