''Erythrostemon gilliesii'' is a shrub in the

legume family The Fabaceae or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomenc ...

. It is commonly known as bird of paradise, but it is not related to the bird of paradise genus ''

Strelitzia ''Strelitzia'' is a genus of five species of perennial plants, native to South Africa. It belongs to the plant family Strelitziaceae. The genus is named after Queen Charlotte of the United Kingdom, who was born a princess of the house of Meckle ...

''.

Description

''Erythrostemon gilliesii'' grows to 1–4 m tall, depending on rainfall. The leaves are bipinnate, 10–15 cm long, bearing 3-10 pairs of pinnae, each with 6-10 pairs of leaflets 5–6 mm long and 2–4 mm broad. The flowers are borne in

raceme A raceme ( or ) or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are produced as the s ...

s up to 20 cm long, each flower with five yellow petals with 10 long conspicuous red

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s. The pods are densely covered in short, red glandular hairs.

Cultivation

It is a striking ornamental plant native to South

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, mainly Argentina and Uruguay. It is naturalized in Texas, and fairly common in the rest of the southwestern United States, where it is known as bird of paradise bush, desert bird of paradise, yellow bird of paradise, and barba de chivo. Although it is a tropical plant adapted to dry climates, it also thrives in the climate of Avsa and neighboring islands in the south of Sea of Marmara in northwestern Turkey, where it is commonly known as Paşabıyığı (Pasabiyigi), Cennetkuşu ağacı (Cennetkusu agaci), which in Turkish means "bird of paradise tree," and Bodurakasya, which means "dwarf acacia". This species is also fairly common in the

Karoo The Karoo ( ; from the Afrikaans borrowing of the South Khoekhoe !Orakobab or Khoemana word ''ǃ’Aukarob'' "Hardveld") is a semi-desert natural region of South Africa. No exact definition of what constitutes the Karoo is available, so its ext ...

of South Africa.

Medicinal uses

Medicine men of peoples indigenous to the

Amazon Rainforest The Amazon rainforest, Amazon jungle or ; es, Selva amazónica, , or usually ; french: Forêt amazonienne; nl, Amazoneregenwoud. In English, the names are sometimes capitalized further, as Amazon Rainforest, Amazon Forest, or Amazon Jungle. ...

used this plant and the similar ''

Caesalpinia pulcherrima ''Caesalpinia pulcherrima'' is a species of flowering plant in the pea family Fabaceae, native to the tropics and subtropics of the Americas. It could be native to the Caribbean, West Indies, but its exact origin is unknown due to widespread cult ...

'', which they called ''ayoowiri'', for curing fever, sores, and cough. Four grams from the root is also said to induce abortion in the first trimester of pregnancy. However, the seeds and the green seed pods of this plant are toxic, provoking severe vomiting and other abdominal symptoms.

Poisoning

Poisoning may occur with the seeds of this plant.

References

*Weeds of California and Other Western States, Vol. 1, University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources, Publication 3488, ,

External links

Jepson Manual Treatment

USDA Plants Profile

Photo gallery
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2734920 Caesalpinieae