Erythrina crista-galli seeds - Cockspur coral tree

Erythrina crista-galli, commonly known as the Cockspur Coral Tree or Coral Tree, is instantly recognisable for its striking, vivid red flowering. This shrub has a twisted appearance, producing thorny branches and forming a widely spreading crown. Its foliage, divided into three leaflets and reminiscent of acacias, is a beautiful, intense green. This provides a lovely setting for the long, terminal clusters of orange-red butterfly-like flowers. The plant's highly exotic and particularly ornamental appearance, combined with the rootstock's good cold resistance, makes it an excellent choice for exotic planting schemes in open ground in regions with mild winters. In harsher climates, it can be grown as a conservatory plant. Seeds should be sown in the warmth, with good chances of success.

Erythrina crista-galli belongs to the large family of Fabaceae (formerly known as Leguminosae), which includes nearly 23,000 species of vegetables (beans, lentils...), wild plants and ornamental species, such as the Black Locust or the magnificent Wisterias. This Coral Tree is native to South America — particularly Bolivia, Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay — where in the wild it colonises wetlands, riverbanks and marshes. In its natural habitat, it can reach between 4 and 9 metres in height, forming a large shrub or small tree, and develops a robust, irregular trunk covered with deeply fissured bark. Its branching creates a widely spreading silhouette, and it loses its foliage during the dry season. In our temperate latitudes, it behaves more like a herbaceous plant in open ground or as a shrub grown under cover, adopting an increasingly spreading habit over time.
In Mediterranean regions, the Coral Tree generally reaches around 2.5 metres in height with a similar spread, dimensions that can be reduced if the aerial parts are regularly affected by frost. It produces long, slender stems with inconspicuous but definitely present thorns! The trunks are knotted and covered with pale bark dotted with a few curved prickles. The deciduous leaves consist of three large, thick, glossy leaflets of an intense green, sometimes subtly bluish. Flowering occurs in late spring in mild climates, or later in summer if the plant needs to regrow its branches. Long flower clusters, measuring 25 to 35cm, appear at the tips and occasionally along the young shoots. These nectar-rich flowers attract many pollinators. Like many Fabaceae, the Coral Tree has a powerful taproot capable of enriching the soil with nitrogen, which allows it to adapt to poor soils. Growing from seed is an economical method to obtain plants and gives good results when done in warmth.

Although it appreciates the warmth of southern regions, the Cockspur Coral Tree prefers soils that are not too dry, even moist. Its exotic appearance helps to create very distinctive borders. On the Mediterranean coast, pair it with Bauhinia variegata, nicknamed the Orchid Tree for its incredible pink flowers that evoke the tropics, as well as Cassia floribunda with its brilliant yellow flowering. One or two Palm trees will add height to your border, and to cover the ground, opt for Lantanas with their globular, often bicoloured or multicoloured flowers. In cold climates, grow your Coral Tree in a container alongside Citrus trees, and overwinter them together in a conservatory before the first frosts.