The late-blooming Red Cassia sets the avenue canopy aflame, flowering as it does when all colour is spent after the monsoon’s departure
In early August I had posted an encounter with the lovely Red Cassia (Cassia roxburghii) and that was already late for the summer flowering season in the subcontinent. Not so for the Red Cassia, though.
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| Drenched and parted from the tree during the uncannily timed Diwali showers, a flower on the road hosts an ant |
Now that the monsoon has receded from most of the country and only my hometown Pondicherry (and the lower coast of TN) had the singular fortune of torrential rainfall on Diwali, a C roxburghii is in full bloom. The tree does flower late but even most other Red Cassias are now done.
Cassias have the ability to hybridize and I have mentioned very different color variations earlier (assuming the brick-red to be the type specimen). This particular tree at the end of J N Street seems to be yet another variation. The flowers are not brick-red; they have a bit of yellow and unlike the first variation, have plenty of pink. The clusters and the flowers are similar to the red cassia — three long stamens, curved inwards; unlike those of Java Cassia, they are not swollen in the middle. The rest of the stamens are smaller.
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| October 28, the Red Cassia in bloom. Not quite as rich as the Java Cassia’s pink, but flowering is profuse |
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| The same tree at the end of J N Street in Pondicherry, notice the predominant pink hue |
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| The type specimen – notice the brick red shade of the clusters |
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| Another Red Cassia variation in yellow and pink |
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| A cluster of the specimen in question – a few yellow flowers but mainly pink |
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| Rain-drenched leaves and a pink bunch |
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| Another cluster from the same tree, the browns are creeping in — dead flowers |
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| Brilliant brick red (with a few yellows and pinks) of the type specimen. This one finished flowering a month ago |
Is this the last red Cassia in bloom? I am tempted to say so but cannot be certain. If you plan to plant flowering trees in your home garden or along an avenue, do consider the Red Cassia. There is nothing like it to brighten up an overcast day and catch the sun as it breaks through the clouds.
Text and photos by Sahastrarashmi
Read more posts on Flowering Trees
Traveller, photographer, art connoisseur, trekking enthusiast, and master trip planner, Sahastrarashmi (SR or Sahastra to his friends) is on a relentless quest for the story of life. An engineer from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, he lives in the former French enclave of Pondicherry.
As a photographer, he is interested in the relationship of humans to their sense of sacred. He has photographed the riverfront of Varanasi for the past 20 years and has extensively covered Kumbha Melas at Prayag and Ujjain. His work has been published in the acclaimed photo magazine, LensWork. He is on a mission to introduce the uninitiated to the glory of the Himalaya and many adventure-lovers have enjoyed their first experience of a Himalayan trek with him.
As a photographer, he is interested in the relationship of humans to their sense of sacred. He has photographed the riverfront of Varanasi for the past 20 years and has extensively covered Kumbha Melas at Prayag and Ujjain. His work has been published in the acclaimed photo magazine, LensWork. He is on a mission to introduce the uninitiated to the glory of the Himalaya and many adventure-lovers have enjoyed their first experience of a Himalayan trek with him.
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I really enjoyed reading your writing on Red Cassia. I read your other article on Red Cassia and its hybrids as well. I do grow this Cassia and a number of other Cassia species at my place in Thailand. BTW Cassia is my favorite flowering tree.
As for Cassia roxburghii, in my opinion, its staminal filament has no swollen node in the middle. If so, it is likely a hybrid of C. roxburghii and other Cassia. The Cassia in one(s) of your images in other article suggested that. I am writing a new article on Cassia hybrids that will include the hybrids of this red Cassia. I would like to ask you for your permission for the use of your images (only the hybrids) on my article. I will give you full image credit. Thanks in advance. Here is the link to my previous articles related to Cassias on blog.
https://kukiattanteeratarm.blogspot.com/?fbclid=IwAR0PgroPcnIzXY5yGdccx5ycJuPjNSIzSpASRvCKE-dkWthpgiasseXnCdU_aem_AaO2WnOd9Lc99nv4W6499I1duC-RChUhV65ObmCQsMFu_1W3qzpZDeB2jFP0-jhnz7xXZv8JR7ryFCp2bfkh6iz2
Thank you for your kind comment! Will ask SR to reply to you soon.
Thanks for your appreciation of the flower and the article. You are most welcome to use the cassia images in the article.
I really appreciate you for the permission to use the Cassia images in my article. THANKS!
Thank you for your praise for the flower!