Frequently asked questions

In English gulmohar is called the flame tree or royal poinciana; other English names include flamboyant, gold mohur and May flower tree. Its scientific name is Delonix regia (Hook.) Raf., of the legume family Fabaceae, and older books call it Poinciana regia. In Hindi it is गुलमोहर, also spelt gulmohur or gul mohr, and in Bengali it is Krishnachura.

Gulmohar is a wide, umbrella-shaped tree with very large, feathery, fern-like leaves, usually roughly 10-15 m tall (ICRAF). In the hot months it is covered in big clusters of scarlet to orange-red flowers, each with four spreading petals and one upright petal marked with yellow and white (Flowers of India). Its flat, woody pods, roughly 30-60 cm long (Flora of China), turn dark brown and hang on the branches for months. The shrubby peacock flower has similar flowers but stays roughly 3 m tall.

Plant a polybag sapling from the forest department or a nursery you trust once the monsoon rains have wetted the soil, in full sun, on well-drained ground with plenty of space. A pit about 60 cm each way is our rule of thumb: refill it with the dug soil mixed with well-rotted farmyard manure, plant at the depth the sapling stood in its bag, shape a basin and put up a guard against goats and cattle. Keep it about 8-10 m from houses, walls and pipes as a rough starting point, not a safe distance, and water it in dry spells for its first two or three years.

With the monsoon, once the soil is properly wet: ICFRE says nursery seedlings are ready by the rainy season. As a guide: July or August in the north-west dry zone (including Rajasthan), the northern plains and central India; June to August in the east and the southern peninsula; May to July in the north-east; and June to July on the west coast. October to November applies only where the main rains come with the north-east monsoon, as on the Tamil Nadu coast. Avoid the hot, dry months of April to June and, in frost-prone areas, winter.

In north and central India it flowers mostly from about April to June, often on nearly bare branches; eFlora of India members report first flowers in April in Delhi, Pune and Mumbai (in Delhi peaking in early May and over by June), April-June in Kolkata, and May in Bengaluru, where it is called the May flower. ICRAF says a young tree usually starts flowering in its fourth or fifth year and grows fast. It flowers less in shade, so plant it in full sun.

Yes, with care: it is a planted tree in Rajasthan, and Plants of Rajasthan records it around Kota, Bundi and Udaipur, flowering in April-May. ICRAF gives its natural rainfall as roughly 700-1,200 mm a year, so in the dry north-west a young tree needs water through its first dry seasons. ICFRE says it is unsuited to heavy frost, so cover saplings on frosty nights in their first two winters.

Gulmohar is not known to be poisonous, but this is not well documented: we found no reliable data on its seeds, pods, flowers or bark, and ASPCA has no entry for it. Keep children and pets from chewing any part, and see a doctor or vet if anyone feels unwell after swallowing some; in an emergency call the National Poisons Information Centre, AIIMS New Delhi, on 1800 116 117. The bigger practical risks are its shallow roots, which can break pavements and walls, and its weak wood, which can break or uproot in storms (ICRAF).

We found no reliable source that says gulmohar is auspicious or inauspicious; it reached India only within roughly the last 150 years (ICFRE), and we found no source for a traditional religious role. Such beliefs vary from family to family. What matters more is space: its surface roots, brittle branches and falling pods make it a poor choice right next to a house, so plant it in an open area.

Only for a short time, as general guidance: a seedling can stay for a season in a large pot with drainage holes, but gulmohar is a fast-growing tree that can reach about 18 m (ICFRE), with a spreading crown and shallow, spreading roots (ICRAF). We found no source on growing it long-term in a pot, so plan to move it into open ground.

No: gulmohar is native only to northern and western Madagascar (Kew), and Kew's checklist lists it as introduced in India. ICFRE notes that it was brought to India within roughly the last 150 years and is now widely grown as a garden and avenue tree. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (global assessment, 2014).