Description: A small to medium-sized tree with distinctive bilobed leaves and attractive pink to purple orchid-like flowers. The flowers are followed by long, flat seed pods.

Identification: Two-lobed leaves; showy five-petalled pink-purple flowers; long flat pods; branched woody habit.

Habitat & distribution: Native from the Indian Subcontinent to Myanmar and commonly cultivated in tropical and subtropical regions.

Uses / importance: Widely cultivated as an ornamental and avenue tree. It also has traditional food, medicinal, fodder and environmental uses.

Taxonomy:
Kingdom – Plantae
Phylum – Streptophyta
Class – Equisetopsida
Subclass – Magnoliidae
Order – Fabales
Family – Fabaceae
Genus – Bauhinia
Species – B. purpurea

Sources: Kew Plants of the World Online (POWO); IPNI; botanical literature.