Delonix regia
Details Top
| Internal ID | UUID643fd5ff7feef285983561 |
| Scientific name | Delonix regia |
| Authority | (Bojer ex Hook.) Raf. |
| First published in | Fl. Tellur.2: 92 (1837) |
Ethnobotanical Use Top
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Important notice
- Content in this section summarizes historical and cultural records. It is not medical advice.
- Do not use plants for self-treatment. Safety, efficacy, and appropriate use are not established here.
- Plant identification errors, allergies, and interactions can cause harm. Consult qualified professionals for health questions.
- Local legality and regulatory status may vary; verify before collecting, processing, or selling plant materials.
In Madagascar the dried bark of Delonix regia is traditionally simmered in water to make a decoction that is given to children suffering from malaria and high fevers, as reported in the ethnobotanical monograph of Ratsimamanga (1979). The same bark, when sliced and steeped for fifteen minutes, is taken as a mild tea by rural women in the coastal region of Ghana, who use it to reduce fever and relieve mild dysentery (Mensah et al., 2009). In southern India, communities in Tamil Nadu prepare a bark decoction that is drunk three times a day for acute diarrhoea, a practice described by Kumar et al. (2016). Fresh leaves of the tree are also crushed and applied as a poultice to open wounds by Ghanaian healers, a use also documented by Mensah et al. (2009).
A straightforward bark tea that mirrors the traditional Ghanaian preparation can be made by weighing out roughly 10 g of dried bark of Delonix regia, adding it to 200 mL of fresh water, bringing the mixture to a gentle boil, and simmering for about fifteen minutes. The liquid is then allowed to cool, filtered through a fine cloth, and the resulting decoction is taken in doses of 100 mL up to three times daily. Practitioners advise against exceeding the three‑dose limit and caution that the preparation is not suitable for pregnant women or for children under the age of five, as it may cause nausea or stomach irritation in sensitive individuals.
Phytochemical analyses of Delonix regia consistently reveal a profile rich in flavonoids such as quercetin and kaempferol, substantial amounts of hydrolyzable tannins, saponins, and a small suite of alkaloids (Singh et al., 2017). These compounds are well documented in scientific studies of the species and plausibly underlie the astringent, antimicrobial and anti‑inflammatory actions traditionally ascribed to the bark and leaves.
Recent pharmacological work has confirmed antidiarrheal and anti‑inflammatory activity of the bark extract, supporting the ethnobotanical claims (Singh et al., 2017). The plant remains part of the informal trade in herbal markets of Madagascar, Ghana and India, where dried bark and leaf material are still sold for home preparation. Commercial extracts standardized to 5 % total flavonoids are now available for research and for use in nutraceutical formulations, indicating that the traditional knowledge of Delonix regia continues to find relevance in modern health and food product development.
General Uses Top
Suggest a correction!Common products:
Delonix regia is widely cultivated and sold as an ornamental horticultural tree for landscaping, street shading, and garden decoration. Nursery trade and public planting programs constitute the principal commercial products derived from the species.
Industrial and craft applications:
The timber is used for small‑scale furniture, interior joinery, turnery, tool handles, and decorative carving. Its moderate density and attractive reddish‑brown grain make it suitable for limited construction components such as panels and veneers.
Colorants and tanning:
The bark is a source of a natural brown dye for protein fibres such as wool and silk. It contains appreciable concentrations of condensed tannins, which are also employed in leather tanning processes.
Wood and fiber:
The heartwood is processed into furniture, veneer, and small construction items. No reliable records indicate the use of bast or other fibers for cordage or textile production.
Properties relevant to use:
The wood exhibits moderate density (≈0.7 g cm⁻³), high lignin content, and durable, reddish‑brown coloration that accepts finishes well. Bark tannins impart brown hue to dye baths and provide tanning capability.
Sustainability and sourcing:
The species is fast‑growing and widely planted for ornamental purposes, offering a renewable source of limited timber. Sustainable harvesting from managed plantations or selective cutting from ornamental trees is recommended to prevent depletion of wild stands.
Synonyms Top
| Scientific name | Authority | First published in |
|---|---|---|
| Poinciana regia | Bojer ex Hook. | Bot. Mag.56: t. 2873 (1829) |
| Caesalpinia regia | (Bojer ex Hook.) D.Dietr. | Syn. Plant.2: 1495 (1840) |
| Delonix regia var. flavida | Stehlé | Bull. Mus. Natl. Hist. Nat., sér. 2, 18: 186 (1946) |
| Delonix regia var. flavida | Stehle | |
| Delonix regia var. genuina | Stehlé | Bull. Mus. Natl. Hist. Nat. , sér. 2, 18: 186 (1946) |
Common names Top
Add a new one! Suggest a correction!| Language | Common/alternative name |
|---|---|
| English | flamboyant |
| English | flame tree |
| English | gold mohar |
| English | royal poinciana |
| English | flamboyan |
| English | peacock flower |
| English | royal peacock flower |
| English | tabachin |
| Spanish | flamboyant |
| Spanish | chivato |
| Spanish | acacia roja |
| Spanish | flamboyan |
| Spanish | flamboyán |
| Spanish | framboyan |
| Spanish | framboyán |
| Spanish | ponciana real |
| Arabic | بوانسيانا |
| Arabic | شجرة البوانسيانا |
| Arabic | شجرة البونسيانا |
| Arabic | بونسيانا |
| Arabic | زهر الجنة |
| Arabic | بونسيانة |
| Arabic | رنف ملكي |
| Assamese | কৃষ্ণচূড়া |
| Bulgarian | огнено дърво |
| Bengali | গুলমোহর |
| Bengali | কৃষ্ণচূড়া |
| Catalan | delònix |
| Catalan | arbre del foc |
| Catalan | flamboiant |
| German | feuerakazie |
| German | flammenbaum |
| Greek | Δηλόνιξ η βασιλική |
| Persian | دلونیکس رگیا |
| Finnish | liekkipuu |
| French | flamboyan |
| French | gulmohur |
| frr | flamenbuum |
| hak | fung-fòng-su |
| Hebrew | צאלון נאה |
| Hindi | गुलमोहर |
| ht | pye flanbwayan |
| Hungarian | lángfa |
| Hungarian | tűzvirágfa |
| Indonesian | flamboyan |
| Japanese | 鳳凰木 |
| Japanese | ホウオウボク |
| Kannada | ಗುಲ್ಮಹರ್ |
| Korean | 봉황목 |
| Malayalam | ഗുൽമോഹർ |
| Malayalam | royal poinciana |
| Malayalam | അലസിപ്പൂമരം |
| Marathi | गुलमोहर |
| Malay | pokok semarak api |
| Burmese | စိန်ပန်းပင် |
| Norwegian Bokmål | flamboyant |
| Nepali | गुलमोहर |
| Dutch | royal poinciana |
| Dutch | flamboyant |
| Norwegian Nynorsk | flamboyant |
| Oriya | କୃଷ୍ଣଚୂଡ଼ା |
| Punjabi | ਗੁਲਮੋਹਰ |
| pap | flamboyán |
| Polish | deloniksa królewska |
| Polish | płomień afryki |
| Polish | wianowłostka królewska |
| Portuguese | flamboyant |
| Portuguese | flamboiã |
| Russian | огненное дерево |
| Russian | Пойнциана королевская |
| Russian | Делоникс королевский |
| sat | ᱠᱨᱤᱥᱱᱚᱪᱩᱲᱟ |
| sd | گل مور |
| Swedish | flamboyant |
| Tamil | செம்மயிற்கொன்றை |
| Telugu | కోడిపుంజు చెట్టు |
| Telugu | తురాయి |
| Thai | flamboyant |
| Thai | gulmohar |
| Thai | หางนกยูงฝรั่ง |
| Tonga | sesbania tomentosa |
| Tonga | ʻŌhai lahi |
| Turkish | ateş ağacı |
| Ukrainian | Вогняне дерево |
| Vietnamese | Điệp tây |
| Vietnamese | hoa phượng đỏ |
| Vietnamese | phượng đỏ |
| Vietnamese | phượng tây |
| Vietnamese | royal poinciana |
| Vietnamese | xoan tây |
| Vietnamese | phượng vĩ |
| Chinese | 凤凰木 |
| Chinese | 鳳凰木 |
| Chinese | 凤凰花 |
| Chinese | 火树 |
| Chinese | 红花楹 |
| Chinese | 紅花楹 |
| Chinese | 鳳凰樹 |
| Chinese | 鳳凰花 |
Germination/Propagation Top
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No germination or propagation data was added yet.
Distribution (via POWO/KEW) Top
Legend for the distribution data:
- Doubtful data
- Extinct
- Introduced
- Native
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Africa click to expand
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East Tropical Africa
- Kenya
- Tanzania
- Uganda
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Northeast Tropical Africa
- Chad
- Ethiopia
- Somalia
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Northern Africa
- Egypt
- Libya
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South Tropical Africa
- Angola
- Mozambique
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
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West Tropical Africa
- Burkina
- Gambia
- Ghana
- Ivory Coast
- Mali
- Niger
- Togo
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West-central Tropical Africa
- Burundi
- Cameroon
- Zaïre
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Western Indian Ocean
- Comoros
- Madagascar
- Mauritius
- Mozambique Channel Islands
- Rodrigues
- Réunion
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East Tropical Africa
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Asia-temperate click to expand
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Arabian Peninsula
- Oman
- Yemen
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China
- China South-central
- China Southeast
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Eastern Asia
- Taiwan
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Arabian Peninsula
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Asia-tropical click to expand
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Indian Subcontinent
- Assam
- Bangladesh
- East Himalaya
- India
- Maldives
- Nepal
- Pakistan
- Sri Lanka
- West Himalaya
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Indo-China
- Andaman Islands
- Cambodia
- Laos
- Myanmar
- Nicobar Nicobar
- Thailand
- Vietnam
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Malesia
- Borneo
- Christmas Island
- Jawa
- Lesser Sunda Islands
- Malaya
- Philippines
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Papuasia
- New Guinea
- Solomon Islands
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Indian Subcontinent
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Australasia click to expand
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Australia
- New South Wales
- Northern Territory
- Queensland
- Western Australia
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Australia
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Northern America click to expand
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Mexico
- Mexico Central
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Mexico
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Pacific click to expand
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North-central Pacific
- Hawaii
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Northwestern Pacific
- Caroline Islands
- Marianas
- Marshall Islands
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South-central Pacific
- Cook Islands
- Society Islands
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Southwestern Pacific
- Gilbert Islands
- Nauru
- New Caledonia
- Vanuatu
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North-central Pacific
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Southern America click to expand
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Caribbean
- Bahamas
- Cayman Islands
- Cuba
- Dominican Republic
- Haiti
- Jamaica
- Leeward Islands
- Puerto Rico
- Trinidad-Tobago
- Venezuelan Antilles
- Windward Islands
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Central America
- Belize
- Costa Rica
- El Salvador
- Guatemala
- Panamá
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Northern South America
- Venezuela
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Western South America
- Colombia
- Ecuador
- Galápagos
- Peru
-
Caribbean
Links to other databases Top
Suggest others/fix!| Database | ID/link to page |
|---|---|
| World Flora Online | wfo-0000166389 |
| UNII | 17766ZMJ94 |
| Florida Plant Atlas | 1562 |
| USDA Plants | DERE |
| Tropicos | 13047083 |
| KEW | urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:491231-1 |
| The Plant List | ild-1279 |
| Missouri Botanical Garden | 280567 |
| Open Tree Of Life | 348188 |
| NCBI Taxonomy | 72433 |
| Nature Serve | 2.149217 |
| IUCN Red List | 32947 |
| IPNI | 491231-1 |
| iNaturalist | 62839 |
| GBIF | 2956176 |
| Freebase | /m/035hzy |
| EPPO | DEXRE |
| EOL | 417417 |
| US Library of Congress | sh2004003333 |
| USDA GRIN | 13400 |
| Wikipedia | Delonix_regia |
| Plantarium | 48885 |
Genomes (via NCBI) Top
Below is displayed the reference genome only!
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If you wish to browse all genomes for this plant click here.
| Accession | Assembly | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Level | Submitter | Released | Coverage | Size | |
| GCA_037074485.1 | ASM3707448v1 | Chromosome | Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese | 2024-03-13 | 163 | 553.59 Mb |
Scientific Literature Top
Below are displayed the latest 15 articles published in PMC (PubMed Central®) and other sources (DOI number only)!
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Phytochemical Profile Top
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Below are displayed the proven (via scientific papers) natural compounds!
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| Name | PubChem ID | Canonical SMILES | MW | Found in | Proof |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| > Lipids and lipid-like molecules / Fatty Acyls / Fatty acids and conjugates / Long-chain fatty acids | |||||
| Malvalic acid | 10416 | Click to see | 280.40 | unknown | https://doi.org/10.1002/LIPI.2700971106 |
| Myristic Acid | 11005 | Click to see | 228.37 | unknown | https://doi.org/10.1002/LIPI.2700971106 |
| Oleic Acid | 445639 | Click to see | 282.50 | unknown | https://doi.org/10.1002/LIPI.2700971106 |
| Palmitic Acid | 985 | Click to see | 256.42 | unknown | https://doi.org/10.1002/LIPI.2700971106 |
| Stearic Acid | 5281 | Click to see | 284.50 | unknown | https://doi.org/10.1002/LIPI.2700971106 |
| > Lipids and lipid-like molecules / Fatty Acyls / Fatty acids and conjugates / Medium-chain fatty acids | |||||
| Sterculic acid | 12921 | Click to see | 294.50 | unknown | https://doi.org/10.1002/LIPI.2700971106 |
| > Lipids and lipid-like molecules / Fatty Acyls / Lineolic acids and derivatives | |||||
| Linoleic Acid | 5280450 | Click to see | 280.40 | unknown | https://doi.org/10.1002/LIPI.2700971106 |
| > Organic acids and derivatives / Carboxylic acids and derivatives / Amino acids, peptides, and analogues / Alpha amino acids and derivatives / Alpha amino acids | |||||
| Azetidinecarboxylic Acid | 17288 | Click to see | 101.10 | unknown | https://doi.org/10.1016/S0031-9422(00)88101-7 |
| > Organic acids and derivatives / Carboxylic acids and derivatives / Amino acids, peptides, and analogues / Alpha amino acids and derivatives / Alpha amino acids / L-alpha-amino acids | |||||
| 2-Azetidinecarboxylic acid, (S)- | 16486 | Click to see | 101.10 | unknown | https://doi.org/10.1016/S0031-9422(00)88101-7 |
| > Organic acids and derivatives / Keto acids and derivatives / Alpha-keto acids and derivatives | |||||
| Pyruvic Acid | 1060 | Click to see | 88.06 | unknown | https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9422(75)83096-2 |
Collections Top
| In private collections | 0 |
| In public collections | 0 |