Erythrina afra

Erythrina afra, the coast coral tree or African coral tree, is a tree native to southeastern Africa, which is often cultivated and has introduced populations in California and India. All the 17 species of coral tree in the genus Erythrina are collectively considered the official tree of Los Angeles, California in the United States.

Description

Erythrina afra is a medium to large deciduous tree. It grows in coastal bushes and riverine forests along the southeastern coast of South Africa and up into Zululand.

Leaves

The compound leaves are made up of three leaflets. Each leaflet is broadly ovate to elliptical. The leaflets do not have prickles and are hairless.

Flowers

The flowers are made up of a main petal and four small petals. The main petal curves back to expose the stamens. The flower colour is warm red to scarlet. This is one of the main differences between Erythrina caffra and Erythrina lysistemon. The flowers form stalked axillary racemes up to 100mm long.

Trunk

The bark on the plant or tree is relatively smooth with intermittent thorns, and the thorns tend to be sharper on younger branches.

Taxonomy

The original etymology of the species name caffra is related to kaffir, an ethnic slur used towards black people in Africa. At the July 2024 International Botanical Congress, a vote was held with the result that "caffra" related names will be amended to afra related ones, with this being implemented at the end of July 2024.