THE GOLDEN SHOWER TREE
Family – Fabaceae
Scientific name – Cassia fistula
COMMON NAMES:
1) The Indian Laburnam or Amaltas.
2) Sometimes also called the Golden Shower, Pudding Pipe tree.
3) Cassia was a
classical name for some tree with aromatic bark, probably a species of wild cinnamon.
4) Its present botanical use is not very appropriate.
5) Fistula in
Latin means a pipe and refers to the pods.
GENERAL INFORMATION:
1) A small
or medium-sized tree, occasionally reaching a height of 60 feet and a girth of
5 feet.
2) The bark is smooth and grey or
greenish-grey on young trees.
3) The tree is very conspicuous in the hot
weather when the flowers appear.
4) These are large and bright yellow and occur
in long pendulous bunches (racemes).
5) At the time of flowering the tree is
leafless or nearly so, the first flowers appearing as the last of the old
leaves are falling and the flowering continues until the fresh foliage has been
developed.
6) The fresh leaves are often of a rich
coppery colour.
7) During the cold weather the tree is usually conspicuous from its pods which are 1—2 feet long and 0.75 to1 inch diameter and dark brown in colour.
USES OF THE GOLDEN SHOWER TREE:
1) This tree is frequently planted for
ornament.
2) The timber is hard and durable but being
available in small sizes only, it is used for posts, carts and similar purposes
in villages rather than in the timber trade.
3) To a small extent the bark is used for tanning.
4) The pods are divided into 1-seeded cells by
thin transverse partitions.
5) The seeds are immersed in a dark-brown sweetish
pulp which is much used medicinally being laxative in small doses and purgative
in larger doses.
PROPOGATION OF THE GOLDEN SHOWER TREE:
1) The pods when ripe should be broken up and
the seed extracted.
2) It is advisable to sow plenty of seed even if
only a few plants are required as much of the seed lies dormant in the soil for
a year or more without germinating though some usually come up in a few months
after sowing.
3) Germination may be hastened by pouring very
hot water (nearly boiling) on the seed and leaving the seeds to soak for a day
or two.
Fruit of The Golden Shower Tree
4) Some of the seeds will probably be found
swollen, these should be removed and sown at once (they must not be allowed to
become dry).
5) The hot water treatment can then be
repeated on any unswollen seeds, if necessary two or three times.
6) The tree transplants readily but sometimes
does not appear to grow well after transplanting.
7) Such plants as a rule eventually recover and
grow well.
8) Under favourable conditions the trees
should start flowering in about five years from seed.
HABITAT OF THE GOLDEN SHOWER TREE:
1) Throughout the greater part of India up to
4,000 feet in the Himalaya, Burma, Indo-China, Java and the Philippines.
2) Planted for ornament in all tropical countries and naturalized in many places where it was not native.
