Erythrina caffra Thumb.

Fam. Fabaceae

From the generous red flowering when it still has no leaves

Still the tropics with one species, the erythrin of the coast, which among the Fabaceae has chosen the colors of the flowers and seeds and the shape of the leaves to confirm the multiform vocation of the family. Erythrina caffra Thumb. Fabaceae family The lucky bean tree. Erythrine of the coast. Zone 9-11. Medium-large deciduous tree that reaches 9-12 meters (29-32ft) in height: it lives in the forests that border the streams along the eastern coasts of South Africa. Trifoliate leaves reaching up to 8-18 meters (26-59ft) with scarlet orange flowers on the plant before the leaves, organized in racemes up to 10 cm (3.93") long. The fruit is a dark-colored siliqua up to 7 cm (2.75") long. It propagates by seed or by cutting. The nectar of the flowers attracts the birds.
Africans do not burn the wood fearing that this could attract lightning: Light and spongy wood used to build canoes and floats for fishing nets. The seeds are used for necklaces (the lucky bean) due to the bright red color.

Over the past ten thousand years, mankind has domesticated "useful" animals and plants to the same extent that these species have "exploited" the tastes and needs of men in order to multiply.

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