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Coral tree

Erythrina

Also called Coraltrees, Coral Trees, Corallodendron, Coral Bean, Coraltree

Coral tree
Photo: Forest & Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0

Erythrina is a genus of about 130 tropical and subtropical trees in the pea family, known for their showy red or orange flowers; most grown are large street, park or shade trees rather than houseplants. Key to success is full sun and well-drained soil in a warm climate.

Family
Fabaceae (Pea & bean family)
Grows as
Tree
Light
Full sun
Water
Water deeply when the soil is dry, reducing sharply once established.
Soil
Well-drained, sandy or loamy soil; tolerates poor soil.
Temperature
20–35 °C; protect below 5 °C, as most species are frost-tender.
How easy
Easy
Safety
Toxic: Seeds and other parts contain alkaloids (erythrina alkaloids) that can cause vomiting and other poisoning symptoms if eaten.

About

Erythrina is a genus of plants in the pea family, Fabaceae. It contains about 130 species, which are distributed in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide. They are trees, with the larger species growing up to 30 m (98 ft) in height. These species are known for their large flowers with long and bright red or orange petals.

Uses

Some coral trees are used widely in the tropics and subtropics as street and park trees, especially in drier areas. In some places, such as Venezuela, bucarés are used as shade trees for coffee or cocoa crops. In the Bengal region, they are used for the same purpose in Schumannianthus dichotoma plantations. E. lanceolata in particular is considered highly suitable as "frame" tree for vanilla vines to grow up on.

Other Erythrina plants

Machete · Coral erythrina · Flame coral tree · Cockspur Coral Tree · Basul · Brazilian Coral Tree · Bucayo · Dwarf erythrina · Broad Leaved Coral Tree · Sacred Coral-tree · Mountain immortelle · Erythrina resupinata

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Erythrina by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.

The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.

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