Adenanthera pavonina
Syn. Corallaria parvifolia, Adenanthera polita, Adenanthera gersenii
Cardinalier • Grenn legliz • Red bead tree • Palo de mato
This tree provides shade, ornament, food and vegetable pearls
French names: Cardinalier, church seed, red seed, church seed tree, coral seed, circasie, condori wood, red sandalwood, cardinal seed, necklace tree, black bourbon wood, licorice tree, plant coral, bean of mutual love, seeds of the cardinal, red black wood, tree with red seeds, …
Creole names: Grenn licorice, grenn legliz, grenn wouj, ..
English names: Santal redwood, circassian seed, circassian tree, red bead tree, bead tree, zombie tree, barricarri, sandal bead tree, red lucky, acacia coral, coral bean tree, coral wood, coral, false wiliwii, false jequirity, red beantree, peacock flower-fence, polynesian peanut, jumbie bead tree, jumnie bead, saga, saga tree , sandal beadtree, sandalwood tree, zumbic tree, sagassed tree, …
Spanish names: Mato colorado, coralillo, coralin, palo de mato, peronias chatas, coralitos, peronia, peronias chata, chatas, choco diamante, arbol del coral, lera, lere, …
German names: Condori baum, indisher Korallenbaum, perlenbaum, rotes sandelholz, …
Italian names: Sandalo rosso, …
Chinese names: Hai dong dou, …
Portuguese names: Carolina, contas de rosario, pau tento, tento, olho de pavão, …
Other names: Ndamu, pomea, vaivai, vaivai ni vavalangi, viriviri, matak, pitpiti, lopa, la'au paina, paina, raktakambal, pitipitio papa'a, kokriki, ...
FAMILY
FABACEAE
ETYMOLOGY
Adenanthera comes from the Greek “adenos” , gland and “anthera” , anther, referring to the small glands located on the anthers.
Pavonina , in Latin, means peacock, surely in relation to the majestic port of the tree or would derive from poppy, the color of the seeds recalling that of the poppy.
The seeds were used to make rosaries, hence the name “church seed”.
ORIGIN
India.
HABITAT
Cultivated.
DESCRIPTION
Medium sized deciduous tree up to 15m high.
The bark is grayish to dark brown in color, smooth, cracking with age.
Its leaves are light green, bipinnate, with alternate leaflets and long, narrow racemes (reminiscent of mimosa leaves).
Its flowers are yellow and fall in long and narrow clusters with corollas with 5 petals.
The seeds are scarlet-red, shiny and very hard. Raw, they are poisonous. They are collected in the fall in France and a little all year round in the tropics. They are contained in large pods of about 20 cm which twist and open at maturity. It takes 20 years to provide seeds and can live for around 200 years.
NEEDS
The Cardinal tree needs medium watering .
It supports any type of soil , preferably draining, rich in minerals and slightly acidic.
Exposure: Full sun.
Hardiness: 10°C (Can withstand brief frosts).
Flowering: in summer for temperate climates and from June to August in the tropics.
Altitude: 0-300m.
MULTIPLICATION
Seeds and cuttings
Cut the seeds (or scarify them with sandpaper) and soak them for 24 hours in lukewarm water before sowing them in a pot 1cm deep. Use a breeding ground as a reference.
Sowing is done all year round under cover (for winter, use a mini greenhouse heated to 25-30°C).
Prefer a bright place.
Seeds germinate in 1 to 8 weeks.
CULTURE
Adenanthera Pavonina needs water when the soil is dry. Water it copiously in summer, and prune it before winter.
You can also grow it in a pot on a terrace or veranda.
MAINTENANCE
It supports sizes well. Prune the branches that cross and the dead branches, water if necessary.
Growth is fast and it does not require much maintenance.
USES
MEDICINAL USE
The uses are not recognized in France.
Dangers: raw seeds are poisonous.
ORNAMENTAL USE
Very beautiful tree in isolated subject or border.
FOOD USE
In Oceania, the seeds are roasted, shelled, then mixed with rice (soy flavored and full of protein).
In 2004, a French patent was filed for the extraction of an agent for the treatment of hair and skin from the seeds.
OTHER USES
The seeds are used in crafts to make necklaces, bracelets, earrings,
The wood, hard and reddish, is used to make valuable furniture as a substitute for sandalwood. Exposed to light, the wood slowly turns purplish red. It is also used for shipbuilding and firewood.
In tropical Asia they are planted in coffee, clove and rubber plantations to provide shade and replenish the soil with their nitrogen-fixing properties.
Ground seeds can produce an oil that has been used as an industrial lubricant. The powder of the crushed seeds mixed with water (condori), is used in India against boils or in case of fever.
ANECDOTES
Because of their remarkable uniformity in size and weight (about 0.26 g), the seeds were used by Asian goldsmiths to weigh precious metals. 4 seeds are about 1g.
In India, the sap from the wood is used to make a red dye which is used for body dyes. It is often placed in front of temples.
In India, miniature lucky charms are made with carved elephants inside which are offered at birth.
The seeds are exchanged by Chinese lovers in the form of necklaces or bracelets. They call it the bean of mutual love.
QUOTE
“The righteous must imitate sandalwood: it perfumes the ax that strikes it”.
indian proverb
SOURCES
• Seeds and men - Romain Dufayard - Ed Sang de la Terre - P 96
• Seeds of the West Indies - Ed PLB - P18
• The big book of amazing seeds - Nathalie Vidal - Ed Orphie - P142
• The big book of tropical trees and shrubs - Jacques tassin - Ed Orphie - P35
• Illustrated flora of the phanerogams of Guadeloupe & Martinique - Jacques Fournet - Ed Gondwana, CIRAD - T1 P583