Urban Tropics discover a rare and very exotic plant for London gardens
The tree which first inspired me to a career in garden design was the Flamboyant Tree (delonix regia), which in botanic circles is widely viewed as the world's most beautiful tree. Unfortunately, it is not even remotely hardy in northern climate gardens and really needs a tropical climate to be at it's best. There is, however, a close relative with very similar but smaller flowers and foliage known as Barbados Pride, caesalpinia pulcherrima (The national flower of Barbados). Trials as to the cold tolerance of this rare and exotic flowering shrub in the warmer micro climate of Inner London look promising and are ongoing - Watch this space, although it may take a while before we can reach conclusive results. If anyone has had experience with Barbados Pride here in the UK please email.