3 Bauhinia variegata var. candida Seeds - Exotic Rare White Orchid Tree - Deciduous Edible

Bauhinia variegata var. candida Seeds

White Orchid Tree

Many of the almost 300 species of Bauhinia are popular garden subjects because of their decorative foliage and ornamental flowers and are widely grown in sub-tropical or tropical regions of the world. Most bauhinias are woody shrubs, some climbing with tendrils or scrambling and some are small trees. The most commonly cultivated is Bauhinia variegata, the orchid tree (not a true orchid), originally from India and China. There are seven bauhinias that are indigenous to southern Africa, and all show horticultural promise. The most well-known and widely cultivated is the pride-of-De Kaap, Bauhinia galpinii, bearing masses of bright orange-red flowers in summer. There is also the yellow bauhinia or bosbeesklou, Bauhinia tomentosa, a large shrub or small tree with bell-shaped yellow flowers; the Kalahari white bauhinia or koffiebeesklou, Bauhinia petersiana, a scrambling shrub or small tree with very crinkled white flowers; the KwaZulu-Natal white bauhinia, Bauhinia natalensis a dainty shrub with bell-shaped white flowers; and the pink bauhinia or sandbeesklou Bauhinia urbaniana a shrub or bushy tree with rose-pink flowers from north-eastern Namibia. After the pride-of-De Kaap, Bauhinia bowkeri is the most striking and although still uncommon in cultivation, it is gaining popularity.

A sensational, dry deciduous flowering tree to about 12 m tall with bilobed leaves and large, white, orchid-like and sweetly scented flowers. Though widely cultivated as an ornamental in tropical Asia, Bauhinia variegata var. candida is rare to find in South Africa. It makes a highly desirable ornamental for warm temperate and tropical regions in USDA Zones 9 to 11. The flowers are edible.