Bauhinia monandra

Kurz.

Butterfly Flower

Fabaceae Edible: Leaves, Flowers 2,834 iNaturalist observations

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Summary

Bauhinia monandra is a species of leguminous trees, of the family Fabaceae. Common names include pink bauhinia, orchid tree, and Napoleon's plume. The tree is native to Madagascar, where it is widespread in lowland humid forests and dry forests. It has naturalised in Myanmar, Australia, Christmas Island, the Caribbean, southern USA, Colombia, Brazil, and the Pacific Islands. The species is invasive in New Caledonia.

Description

A deciduous tree. It grows to 7 m tall and spreads to 4 m across. The stem is slender and erect. It often forms several stems. It has widely spreading branches. The leaves have 2 lobes and are yellowish-green. The flowers are pale pink with red dots and have 5 petals and one fertile stamen. Flowers are usually of one sex. They are orchid like and are 10 cm across. They occur around stalks on the end of branches. The flowers only have one stamen. Pods are 20 cm long.

Edible Uses

Young leaves - cooked and eaten as a vegetable. Young seedpods - cooked and eaten as a vegetable. The protein content of the seed was 33.09%, comparing fairly with soya beans (Glycine max) and groundnuts (Arachis hypogaea). The seeds also yield 21.45% soluble carbohydrates, comparing favorably with soybean 20.7% and peanut 24.6%. It also yields 3.25% fibre. The hydrogen cyanide content was 0.32 mg/100g; chronic exposure has been reported to cause neurological, respiratory, cardiovascular and thyroid debilities. The study concludes that the seeds are rich in nutrient and low in anti-nutritional compounds. If popularized, the plant may serve as a complimentary source of essential nutrients, provided toxicants are removed.

Medicinal Uses

The pods are pounded and boiled in water to provide a laxative drink. They are used as an astringent for treating diarrhoea and dysentery, and are also used as a remedy for fevers. A decoction of the root and bark is used in the treatment of leprosy and small pox. An anti-inflammatory ointment is made from the bark. The leaves have been used in the treatment of diabetes. Leaf extracts are used in the treatment of eye ailments. An acute and subacute toxicity study of a methanolic leaf extract showed relatively low toxicity on acute administration, but advised caution when used subacutely as remedy for diabetes. A study of the methanol extract of the dried leaves showed significant blood glucose reduction. A water fraction had hypoglycemic activity comparable to glibenclamide. Leaf extracts exhibited very potent antioxidant activity, compared with pure catechins used as positive controls.

Distribution

A tropical plant. It prefers a well composted, moist, well drained soil. It grows in areas with a rainfall between 900-2,000 mm per year. It does best in a protected sunny position. It is drought and frost tender. It suits hardiness zones 11-12.

Where It Grows

Africa, Angola, Asia, Australia, Bangladesh, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Caribbean, Caroline Islands, Central America, Christmas Island, Congo DR, Cook Is., Cuba, Dominican Republic, East Africa, Fiji, Guiana, Haiti, Hawaii, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Ivory Coast, Leeward Is., Liberia, Madagascar*, Malaysia, Mali, Mariana Islands, Marquesas, Mexico, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nauru, Nigeria, Niue, Pacific, Papua New Guinea, PNG, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Rotuma, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, SE Asia, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South America, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, Tonga, Trinidad-Tobago, USA, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, West Africa, West Indies, Zambia, Zimbabwe,

Cultivation

Plants are grown from seed. Seed should be treated before sowing. It can be grown by air-layering or grafting.

Propagation

Seed - it has a hard seedcoat and benefits from scarification before sowing in order to speed up and improve germination. This can usually be done by pouring a small amount of nearly boiling water on the seeds (being careful not to cook them!) and then soaking them for 12 - 24 hours in warm water. By this time they should have imbibed moisture and swollen - if they have not, then carefully make a nick in the seedcoat (being careful not to damage the embryo) and soak for a further 12 hours before sowing. Up to 100% germination of treated seed can be expected, with sprouting commencing after about 4 days.

Other Uses

The pods and seeds are sources of black and blue dyes. The fibrous bark can be used for making cordage. The heartwood is brown; the sapwood whitish. The wood is hard. It is only used for fuel. The trees are sometimes used to make 'living fences' - they are pollarded and the long pliable branches are arranged into the framework of a fence. I am not sure if this means that the stems are cut from the tree and made into a fence, or if the new growth after the tree is pollarded is woven whilst still on the tree.

Other Information

It is not known if it is used for food in Papua New Guinea.

Notes

It is normally grown in gardens as an ornamental. There are about 250-350 Bauhinia species. Most are in the tropics. Also as Caesalpinaceae.

Synonyms

Bauhinia kappler Sagotand others

Also Known As

Butterfly Bauhinia, Flores mariposa, Jerusalem date, Mariposa, Mong-bo don-hung, Napolean's cocked hat, Napoleon's plume, Orchid tree, Pink butterfly tree, St Thomas’s Tree, Swedaw

References (21)

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Ekman Herbarium records Haiti
Etherington, K., & Imwold, D., (Eds), 2001, Botanica's Trees & Shrubs. The illustrated A-Z of over 8500 trees and shrubs. Random House, Australia. p 121

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