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1. Every Friday post a photo that includes one or more flowers.
2. Please only post photos you have authority to use.
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Thursday 12 March 2015

FFF173 - CASSIA FISTULA

Cassia fistula, known as the golden shower tree and by other names, is a flowering plant in the family Fabaceae. The species is native to the Indian subcontinent and adjacent regions of Southeast Asia. It ranges from southern Pakistan eastward throughout India to Myanmar and Thailand and south to Sri Lanka. In literature, it is closely associated with the Mullai (forest) region of Sangam landscape. It is the national tree of Thailand, and its flower is Thailand's national flower. It is also the state flower of Kerala in India and of immense importance amongst the Malayali population. It is a popular ornamental plant and is also used in herbal medicine.

The golden shower tree is a medium-sized tree, growing to 10–20 m tall with fast growth. The leaves are deciduous, 15–60 cm long, and pinnate with three to eight pairs of leaflets, each leaflet 7–21 cm long and 4–9 cm broad. The fragrant flowers are produced in pendulous racemes 20–40 cm long, each flower 4–7 cm diameter with five yellow petals of equal size and shape. The fruit is a legume, 30–60 cm long and 1.5–2.5 centimetres broad, with a pungent odour and containing several seeds. The tree has strong and very durable wood.

Cassia fistula is widely grown as an ornamental plant in tropical and subtropical areas. It blooms in late spring. Flowering is profuse, with trees being covered with yellow flowers, many times with almost no leaf being seen. It will grow well in dry climates. Growth for this tree is best in full sun on well-drained soil; it is relatively drought tolerant and slightly salt tolerant. It will tolerate light brief frost, but can get damaged if the cold persists. It can be subject to mildew or leaf spot, especially during the second half of the growing season. The tree will bloom better where there is pronounced difference between summer and winter temperatures.

In Ayurvedic medicine, the golden shower tree is known as aragvadha, meaning "disease killer". The fruit pulp is considered a purgative, and self-medication or any use without medical supervision is strongly advised against in Ayurvedic texts. Though its use in herbalism has been attested to for millennia, little research has been conducted in modern times.


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11 comments:

  1. Gorgeous flowers. These flowers bring back good childhood memories. I lived in Thailand for four years and really loved my time there.

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  2. The flowers look quite delicate! Love the colour!

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  3. Yet another flower that's completely new to me, beautifully photographed and described. Thank you!

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  4. Once i had them in my garden, too - it's along time ago!

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  5. Heisann! Wonderful "sunstar" flowers shining .... almost like mine.... Have a nice weekend ;:OD)

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  6. Lovely flowers. Have a nice weekend! Marika

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  7. I've never seen these beautiful flowers. Thank you for sharing this.

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  8. I think I have seen this kind of flowers before. And I like the name too- golden showers.

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  9. Thanks Nick for the comment in my linked post. I am thinking about the illness you are referring too. I think that was the respiratory allergy i got before i travelled to Sydney in November. That was long ago. It suddenly ended there and i had a wonderful time mostly the whole of December in New Zealand. And yes, by the way, i have two growing Cassia fistula near my house in the province, but they get so vigorously growing so need to prune them regularly.

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  10. Katarina and Chasing the blooms, your links are not working...

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