Called the Queen of all flowering trees, and it’s genuinely one of the most beautiful tropical trees out there, right up there with our rainbow shower tree and jacaranda in the just-for-looks category.
The Basics
Pride of Burma, Amherstia nobilis, is a tree in the legume family, Fabaceae.
Origin and Habitat
Native to Myanmar (Burma), now rare even in its native range and prized in botanical collections worldwide.
What It Looks Like
Long, hanging clusters of striking red and orange flowers, which is exactly what earns it the “Queen of flowering trees” title, and even the new leaf growth on this one has a strange, beautiful look to it.
Uses and Flavor
Purely ornamental, grown for the spectacular bloom.
Growing It Here
Julia and I planted this one for our anniversary. It’s grown into a happy, healthy tree and produced its first set of flowers relatively quickly, faster than I expected for a tree this rare.
Pests and Diseases to Watch For
Nothing to report so far.
Kenta’s Take
Planting the rarest tree we own for an anniversary and having it reward us with an early bloom feels like more than luck. This one’s turned into one of the more sentimental favorites of the whole one-tree-a-day year.