Is It a Yellow Poinciana or a Yellow Poinciana?
June 18, 2019
June is one of the best months for enjoying flowering trees in Southwest Florida. The royal poincianas and jacarandas are in bloom and several trees with yellow flowers are also showing off. In the last post, we talked about the golden shower tree and its bright yellow blooms. Today we’ll introduce the yellow flame tree, Peltophorum dubium, sometimes called the yellow poinciana and the copperpod, Peltophorum pterocarpum, which is also sometimes called the yellow poinciana. These are not to be confused with the yellow poinciana, Delonix regia var. flavida, which is actually a cultivar of the royal poinciana but with, you guessed it, yellow flowers.
As you can see, referring to a plant by its common name can create confusion, especially if you’re looking to purchase one! Both P. dubium and P. pterocarpum look similar from afar. Up close, P. dubium has yellow flower buds and P. pterocarpum has rust-colored buds, leading to its copperpod common name. You can even see the copper color in the flowers of P. pterocarpum while P.dubium’s flowers are solid yellow. Whether this distinction could be used to tell the trees apart everywhere, we don’t know, but it is certainly evident on the trees around the Edison Ford. Peltophorum dubium is native to this hemisphere (but not the U.S), while P. pterocarpum is native to the tropics in the Eastern Hemisphere. Both have tiny leaves and are considered great shade trees for large areas away from houses and sidewalks. Both grow fast in southwest Florida and P. dubium is a bit more cold tolerant, surviving as far north as Orlando. For more information on Peltophorum trees in south Florida, visit here.
If you’re looking for a flowering tree for your landscape, visit our Garden Shop and talk with our garden experts about the best trees for your yard. Not all flowering trees will get big – there are some you can even keep in a pot if you need to!