Tipuana tipu (Benth.) Kuntze

Spice Flower Fruit In the field

Family: LEGUMINOSAE

Genus: Tipuana

Spanish common name: Tipa. Tipuana.

General distribution (Phytogeography): Neotropical

Flowering time: JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Life-forms: Macrophanerophyte.

Habitats: Garden plants. Cultivated in urban gardens.

Characteristics: A semi-deciduous tree 10 to 25 m in height. Bark is dark grey. Leaves are composite, odd-pinnate, 10-20 cm in length, with 7-11 pairs of opposite and alternate leaves, oblong, 2-4.5 cm in length and 0.7 to 2 cm in width. Inflorescences in auxiliary and terminal racemes. Corolla is yellow or orange. Fruit in an elliptic samara, 4.7 cm in length and 1.5 to 2.5 cm in width, leathery.

Origin: South of South-America, specially in Argentina.