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Flora and Fauna:
"Blooming African Tulip Trees Brighten up Winter Months"

Now that the borrachos have shed their pink flowers, the African tulip trees are putting on a show. A member of the Bignonia family, they are properly called Spathodea campanulata after the Greek word spathe, or blade, which refers to the shape of the corolla. They bloom year-round, but especially well from late fall to early spring. African tulips are large, deciduous evergreen trees with interesting, gracefully shaped trunks that can reach 50-60 feet in height. They have a 35-50-foot canopy and grow rapidly in the full sun. An eight-foot-tree will double its height in a year or less, will reach 50 feet in 10 years and can live for 150 years. African tulips are not suitable for small yards unless you want full shade, and they should be planted in sheltered areas, since their bark is soft and brittle and easily damaged by high winds. The flowers, fruit and twigs that drop from the trees can also be messy, so it is wise to plant the trees away from the house and driveway. They require little care but like to be watered until well established.

An African tulip tree in bloom at Club Rinconada - Photo by Virginia Vickers Braun

The brilliant orange-red flowers of the African tulip are fringed with yellow and appear at the ends of the branches, which grow high on their trunks. Individual flowers last about three days. If you look at them closely, you'll see that they form large clusters around soft brown, claw-like buds. The buds open from the outside to the inside and contain water that is useful to birds. Water will spray out of the buds like a fountain when pricked, hence the trees have been nicknamed “fountain trees.” The buds would make great water pistols if your kids could ever reach them. The trees also attract butterflies and bees. After the flowers finish blooming, elongated seedpods form. They contain transparent, wing-shaped seeds that split open after they drop.

As the name suggests, African tulips are native to tropical West Africa, specifically Uganda and West Kenya, where some tribes use the wood to make drums and paper, and dyes from the flowers. The flowers, bark and leaves have medicinal uses, and the seeds are edible. The trees are also associated with the practice of magic. If you cut the wood, you'll notice it smells like garlic.

Other names for the African tulip tree are “flame of the forest,” “fireball,” and “fire tree.” African tulips should not be confused with tulip trees, or yellow poplars, which are one of the tallest deciduous trees in the eastern United States, reaching up to 150 feet. Yellow poplars are not actual poplars, but members of the magnolia family. They have greenish-yellow flowers. African tulips are related to another beautiful tree, the jacaranda. While African tulip trees are considered one of the most exotic ornamental trees in the world, they are viewed as an invasive, undesirable weed in some places, such as Hawaii and Australia. -- Virginia Vickers Braun

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