Cassia grandis L.f.
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Authority
Isley, Duane. 1975. Leguminosae of the United States: II. Subfamily Caesalpinioideae. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 25 (2): 1-228.
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Family
Caesalpiniaceae
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Scientific Name
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Description
Species Description - Pubescent large tree 40-60 feet (to 100 feet in tropics), trunk sometimes spiny, the young growth rusty-villosulous to tomentose. Leafstalk 1.5-3 dm, eglandular; leaflets petiolulate, 8-15(-20?) pairs, oblong-elliptic, 3-6 cm, mostly 2.3-3 r, tomentose, becoming thinly pubescent beneath and shiny above. Stipules deciduous, not seen. Flowers in contiguous erect racemes (3-) 12-25 cm appearing with leaves or when tree is leafless. Bracts 1-2 mm, caducous; pedicels 1-2 cm; sepals subequal, elliptic, 7-9 mm, puberulent, gray-pink, becoming yellow-peach in bud; corolla pink within, white-bordered or whitish outside, aging to orange (rarely entirely white), 2-2.5 cm diam, somewhat irregular; functional stamens 10 or upper 3 abortive, the lower 3 with filaments arcuate-exserted, not medially swollen or bulbous, anthers conspicuously pilose. Legume indehiscent, pendent, huge, linear, 4-6(-10) dm long, 4-6 cm broad, 3-4 cm thick; pulp in pod malodorous, becoming woody; sutures enlarged, one sulcate. Seeds transverse, many.
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Discussion
C. renigera Hort. p.p. CN 2n = 28 (Atchison, 1951; Jacob, 1940). Listed for Florida by Barrett (1956) and Menninger (1958, 1959), I have seen and collected C. granáis in the Miami area.
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Distribution
Florida. Cult, ornamental. Pink shower, Horse Cassia. American tropics, now also distributed in Old World.