Description
This tree occurs in Zimbabwe, Transvaal, Natal, Eastern Cape, Transkei and Swaziland. A small evergreen, drought and frost hardy tree is suitable for townhouse gardens, in a pot or used as a hedge. It is quite fast growing and starts flowering quite early. Pruning stimulates flowering. It can grow in almost any soil as long as it has good drainage. It produces golden-yellow flowers that closely resemble the flowers of Laburnum, which is why Calpurnia aurea is commonly described as Wild Laburnum. It blooms in mid-summer for a long period of time. Flowers are followed by fruit which are thin pods. The tree is easy to prune and maintain and can be grown is a sunny or partially sunny spot. They grow to about 3 meters. It attracts birds and butterflies and is eaten by Dassies. The flowers are pollinated by carpenter bees. It is a medicinal plant as it is used to treat maggot infections and crushed roots are used to treat lice. Named after the Roman poet, Calpurnius and the Latin aurea =golden, referring to the flowers. It occurs from the Eastern Cape, KZN, Mpumalanga, Gauteng and Limpopo.
