Caesalpinia FERREA

Caesalpinia FERREA - Brazilian ironwood, Leopard tree, Caesalpinia ferrea.

Caesalpinia belongs to the extensive Fabaceae (Legume) family, containing, according to various sources, from 60 to 150 plant species. All growing areas are in the warm regions of both hemispheres of the planet, but the native range of origin of this plant is the lands of Argentina, Uruguay, Barbados island, and southeastern regions of Asia and tropical America.

All representatives of the genus possess a shrubby or tree-like growth form; in rare cases, they take the form of lianas (that is, represented as climbing shrubs). When grown under indoor conditions, the height of the plant does not exceed one and a half meters (4.9 ft). Their shoots are often covered with thorns. Leaves with bipinnate and palmate-compound outlines form on the branches, somewhat resembling the delicate foliage of acacia, but in this representative of legumes, the structure is somewhat more complex. The leaflets are remarkably symmetrical, painted in a bright lime-green color. It is curious that with the arrival of evening hours, the plant's leaves begin to fold, which makes them considered even more ornamental.

During flowering, buds gathered in raceme inflorescences begin to open at the tops of the shoots. Still unopened buds look like small balls or wheels. The flowers are distinguished by large sizes and yellow, orange, cream, or red shades, but specimens with two-toned petal coloration are also encountered. The calyx has five lobes; the outlines of the lower one are concave and usually exceed the others in size. The corolla also has five petals; their parameters are often equal, or the upper one is smaller than all the rest. Inside the corolla, five pairs of free stamens grow; the ovary is sessile. It is the stamens that give the flower an exotic look, as they hang freely from the corolla, resembling whiskers. Under natural conditions, fragrant and bright flowers attract various insects (bees), butterflies, and even hummingbirds for pollination.

After pollination of the flowers, a fruit ripens in the form of a pod with a leathery surface, which can be swollen or flat; upon ripening, it either dehisces or remains closed. Inside are seeds, which can be scattered by the plant if the pod opens.

Caesalpinia ferrea is a deciduous tree up to 10 m (33 ft) in height. A straight trunk with mottled bark and a dense crown. Distinctly divided fern-like leaves. Yellow flowers.

A day or two before sowing, it is required to soak the seeds in warm water. Then their scarification is carried out - the seed coat is carefully rubbed with a nail file, while it is important not to damage its inner part. Sowing is performed in a peat-sand mix, thoroughly moistened before sowing. The embedding depth of the seed is equal to 0.5 cm (0.2 in). During germination, the substrate must always remain moist, but not waterlogged. Then the container with crops is covered with a piece of glass or wrapped in a transparent plastic bag. The place where the pot with seeds is placed should be well-lit, and the temperature maintained in the range of 20-25 °C (68-77 °F). When caring for crops, the cover should be removed daily for 10-15 minutes, and if the soil begins to dry out, spray it from a spray bottle. The first sprouts may appear in 10 days, or after 4 months. After a pair of true leaves develops on the plants, repotting into individual pots can be carried out.

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The plant prefers a brightly lit place where it will have at least 8 hours of good light. It is best to place the pot on a windowsill of an east or west window. If there is not enough light, flowering will not occur. In the spring-summer period, the temperature range is 21-25 °C (70-77 °F); with the arrival of autumn, values of 15-18 °C (59-64 °F) will be optimal. Air humidity when growing the plant should be moderate, but it can adapt to dry indoor air; however, it is better to carry out periodic spraying of the foliage. As flowers fade, they should be removed from the bush. In springtime, pruning is recommended, but one should remember that inflorescences will develop on the current year's growth, and if pruning is delayed, flowering might not occur. The plant is used for growing in the bonsai technique. During the summer period, it is recommended to take it out into the fresh air.

Watering in summertime requires regularity - every 2-3 days. With the arrival of winter, soil moistening becomes less frequent, and its top layer should dry out slightly. When the plant is young, drying out the root ball too much is fatal for it, although mature specimens subsequently easily cope with drought. If watering is insufficient, flowers may fail to form. Fertilization is carried out from the beginning of the growing season with a frequency of once every 14 days. In early spring, preparations with increased nitrogen content are recommended - this is necessary for building up foliage mass, and to improve the flowering process, fertilizers dominated by phosphorus and potassium should be used.

While the plant is young, repotting is necessary annually, but over time, such a pot change is recommended only once every 2 years. A new pot is chosen 2-3 cm (0.8-1.2 in) larger than the old one. A drainage layer is laid at the bottom. It should be taken into account that the most active growth and flowering is observed when the root system is completely intertwined and fills the entire space of the pot. Only when root shoots become visible in the drainage holes is it a signal to change the pot. A simple substrate with not overly high nutrition will do - for example, a mixture of leaf soil and sod soil with the addition of coarse-grained sand. Commercial formulations based on peat moss with the addition of perlite or vermiculite can be used. The acidity of such a soil mix should be neutral (pH 6.5-7.5). When repotting, remember that damage to the root system of a young Caesalpinia will lead to its death, so this operation is performed using the transfer method.