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Royal Poinciana click pic to enlarge |
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Zone 10 A spectacular spring bloomer (May-June, maybe July) and consistently voted among the top 5 most beautiful flowering trees in the world, the Royal Poinciana deserves its support. It may be the most colorful flowering tree as well
click pic to enlarge Related to the Tamarind and mimosa tree, this native of Madagascar is a tropical legume with many attributes
click pic to enlarge Royal Poinciana is deciduous in winter allowing sun to penetrate in months South Florida wants full sun exposure. In early summer, the voluminous red blooms appear and will hold for 4-8 weeks
click pics to enlarge
Here are some blooms opening, others already red. After that, the Delonix re-foliates its wide spreading branches with delicate medium green compound leaves Here is a tree we spotted that has a more orange cast to the flowers, and rarely, you see the Royal with unmistakeable full orange color
click pic to enlarge As with other flowering trees such as the Yellow Tabebuia, cutting off sprinkler water in the winter and early spring prior to blooming promotes a far better flowering display. Irrigation water at these times may even stop all flowers from forming. The older the tree, the more intensely it will bloom The Poinciana is rated to a tall 40 feet
click pic to enlarge In hot months the fine loose leaves
click pics to enlarge provide a wonderful "broken" shade beneath
click pics to enlarge well suited for any plantings that enjoy shifting light and protection from the hot summer sun
click pic to enlarge Even lawn grasses grow well underneath. Look at the top photo again and notice the "broken" sun showing in. This type of tropical shade allows almost any plant to be happy. For this reason, growing grass to near the trunk is a big waste of an excellent environment. Much better to have a large bed of fancy tropicals under your Royal
click pic to enlarge Young, it tends to grow as wide as tall causing an appearance that it will invade the air space of driveways, roofs and garages. However, as it matures, it picks up its drooping branches to create a high umbrella
click pic to enlarge Some careful light pruning during maturation can help make a better formed tree. Take most of the branches that grow beneath the main crown. These lower branches will just add more shade and are not needed. If your tree is a little thin for branches, skip this pruning
click pic to enlarge Royal Poinciana is tolerant of some salt drift, not too fussy as to soil and has no pests. Light fertilization is recommended. Little or no water should be added by hand or sprinklers during late fall and all of winter (rain is OK) Bonsai is possible as seen from this website
Plant as a foundation tree or, if you have the land, use three about 20 feet apart in a triangle. The effect will be a huge protected shaded area suitable for almost all plants and people There is also an ultra rare yellow cultivar named Delonix regia ‘Kampong Yellow’ or Delonix regia ‘Flavia’. We are currently growing this color and will have seeds and plants about 2014-15. We have only seen pictures of the tree growing in Madagascar and zero seen in Florida so if you decide you want one, you will enjoy MAJOR bragging rights for such a specimen There is also a mis-named yellow Poinciana (not a Delonix, just a name) which blooms in late spring as well. In addition, a very colorful dwarf to 5-9 feet is called Paradise Poinciana |
