Peltophorum Species, African Yellow Flamboyant Tree, African Weeping Wattle, Yellow Poinciana

According to Karl Gercens, an expert horticulturalist and plant enthusiast who gives lectures and classes around the USA including at Lon...Read Moregwood Gardens, "Peltophorum africanum not only makes a blazing show with its cheery floral display, but it has many uses by indigenous people as well. Young leaves and pods are eaten by livestock. Flowers provide a high yield of nectar and pollen for bee-keeping. The timber can be used for furniture. The wood is good good for fuel. It makes a good shade tree for both livestock and humans. There are also various medicinal uses recorded. Roots are used to heal wounds, toothache and throat sores; root, leaves and bark used to clear intestinal parasites and relieve stomach problems; bark relieves colic; stem and root used for diarrhoea and dysentery."

Mr. Gercens is the Conservatory Horticulturist at Longwood Gardens. Learn more about him and his love of all things horticulture at http://www.karlgercens.com/

I planted about five years back, the tree is probably around 25 feet high. It was only about five feet when planted. Grows very fast in Z...Read Moreone 10A, Port Charlotte, Fl.

Supposedly a zone 11 tree, this plant does great in Pasadena (a zone 9b). It is a relative of the Cassia and has similar colored flowers...Read More. Being a legume, it also can be covered with dark brown, slightly twisted pods. This is a common plant in tropical Africa but pretty rare in cultivation here in so Cal (so far).