Erythrina × bidwillii

Erythrina × bidwillii
Light:
Moisture:
Hardiness:	8
Soil pH:	5.6-8.4
Height:	13'
Width:	8'
Blooms:	Mid Summer-Early Fall
Nitrogen Fixer
Medicinal Rating:
Tea:	Yes

Erythrina × bidwillii

Propagation: Seed - pre-soak for 12 hours in warm water and sow spring in a greenhouse. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.

Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame. Overwinter in a greenhouse and plant out in late spring or early summer.

Heeled cuttings of young growth in the spring in a frame. Overwinter in a greenhouse and plant out in late spring or early summer.

Cultivation: Requires a moderately fertile well-drained soil in a very sunny position. Best if given the protection of an east, south or south-west facing wall.

Plants are not very hardy outdoors in Britain though the rootstock can tolerate temperatures down to about -10°c provided the stem bases are thickly mulched with organic matter such as leaf litter or sawdust and covered with bracken. The top growth will be killed by the frost but new growth from the rootstock will flower in late summer.

Plants take 3 - 4 years to flower from seed.

This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria, these bacteria form nodules on the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be used by other plants growing nearby.

Range: A garden hybrid, E. crista-galli x E. herbacea.

Habitat: Not known in the wild.

Medicinal: The plant is narcotic and purgative.

Pollinators: Insects

Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.

Flower Type: Hermaphrodite

Known Hazards: The plant contains alkaloids that have powerful narcotic and purgative effects.

Links

• Erythrina × bidwillii - Plants for a Future