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Oroxylum indicum
Also called Broken Bones Tree
Oroxylum indicum, the Indian trumpet tree, is a fast-growing tropical tree in the trumpet-vine family, grown mainly for its huge leaves and long, sword-like seed pods. It is a large tree, so it suits gardens with space rather than pots.
Oroxylum indicum is a species of flowering plant, in the monotypic genus Oroxylum in the family Bignoniaceae. It is commonly called Indian trumpet tree, oroxylum, Indian trumpet flower, broken bones, scythe tree, tree of Damocles, or midnight horror. It can reach a height of 18 metres (59 ft). Various segments of the tree are used in traditional medicine.
Various segments of O. indicum, including leaves, root bark, heartwood, and seeds, contain diverse phytochemicals, such as prunetin, sitosterol, oroxindin, oroxylin-A, biochanin-A, ellagic acid, tetuin, anthraquinone, and emodin. Several of the compounds are under preliminary research to identify their potential biological properties.
Oroxylum indicum is native to the Indian subcontinent, the Himalayan foothills with a part extending to Bhutan and southern China, Indochina and the Malesia regions. In Vietnam, the tree is called núc nác (sometimes sò đo), and specimens can be found in Cat Tien National Park.
The tree is often grown as an ornamental plant for its strange appearance. Materials used include the wood, tannins and dyestuffs.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Oroxylum indicum 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.
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.
