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Erythrina herbacea
Also called Coral Bean, Cherokee Bean, Cardinal Spear, Red Cardinal, Eastern Coral Bean, Eastern Coralbean
Erythrina herbacea, commonly known as the Eastern Coralbean, Cherokee Bean, Mamou in South Louisiana, Red Cardinal, or Cardinal Spear is a flowering shrub or small tree found throughout the southeastern United States and northeastern Mexico; it has also been reported from parts of Central America and, as an introduced species, from Pakistan. Various other systematic names have been used for this plant in the past, including Erythrina arborea, Erythrina hederifolia, Erythrina humilis, Erythrina rubicunda, Corallodendron herbaceum and Xyphanthus hederifolius.
Coral bean grows best in sandy soils and has moderate salt tolerance. It is found in open woods, forest clearings, hammocks, and disturbed areas. In the United States, it ranges from southeastern North Carolina south to Florida and west to southeastern Oklahoma and eastern Texas. E. herbacea inhabits Tamaulipas in Mexico.
Erythrina herbacea can be readily grown in gardens within its natural range. Although its use in gardens is not particularly common, it is popular among those who do grow it as a source of early season color, for its hardiness (USDA Zones 7-10), and because it attracts hummingbirds.
Erythrina · Thorny Coraltree · American Coral Tree · Erythrina ankaranensis · Erythrina atitlanensis · Machete · Erythrina burana · Erythrina burttii · Erythrina chiapasana · Coral erythrina · Flame coral tree · Cockspur Coral Tree
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Erythrina herbacea by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
