Erythrina caffra
| Erythrina caffra | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Growth habit of a mature tree | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Rosids |
| Order: | Fabales |
| Family: | Fabaceae |
| Genus: | Erythrina |
| Species: | E. caffra |
| Binomial name | |
|
Erythrina caffra Thunb. |
|
| Synonyms | |
|
Erythrina viarium Tod. |
|
Erythrina viarium Tod.
Erythrina caffra, the coast coral tree or African coral tree, is a tree native to southeastern Africa, which is often cultivated and has introduced populations in India. It is the official tree of Los Angeles, California in the United States.
Erythrina caffra is a medium to large deciduous tree. It grows in coastal bushes and riverine forests along the south eastern coast of South Africa and up into Zululand.
The leaves are made up of three leaflets. Each leaflet is broadly ovate to elliptical. The leaflets do not have prickles and are hairless.
The flowers are made up of a main petal and four small petals. The main petal curves back to expose the stamens. This is one of the main differences between Erythrina caffra and Erythrina lysistemon. The flowers form stalked axillary racemes up to 100mm long.
The bark is reasonably smooth with thorns every now and then. The younger the branch the sharper the thorns.
Close-up view, showing leaf arrangement, shape and size
View of trunk showing prickles
Inflorescence
Trypsin inhibitor isolated from the seeds of Erythrina caffra
...
Wikipedia