Virginia Tech Dendrology

bird-of-paradise shrub Fabaceae Caesalpinia gilliesii (Wall. ex Hook.) Wall. ex D. Dietr. Listen to the Latin symbol: CAGI
Leaf: Alternate, evergreen or deciduous, feathery bipinnately compound, to 6 inches long, leaflets oval and 1/4 inch long, yellow- or blue-green above and light green below.
Flower: Species is monoecious; very showy upright 6 inch terminal panicles, lower flowers opening first; individual flowers 1 1/2 inch wide with 5 yellow petals and very long red anthers, appearing mid-summer.
Fruit: A flattened bean-like pod, green to red and covered in glandular hairs, 2 1/2 inches long, popping open and curling at maturity.
Twig: Slender, green and smooth; glandular hairs present at tips; buds beige and wedge-shaped.
Bark: Green- to red-brown and mostly smooth.
Form: A shrub to 10 feet, usually multi-stemmed and widely spreading.
 Looks like: pride-of-Barbados
leaf flower bark form1 map
Additional Range Information: Caesalpinia gilliesii is planted in the USDA hardiness zones shown above and may seed into the landscape. Download the full-size PDF map.
External Links: USDA Plants Database
All material © 2019 Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation; Photos and text by: John Seiler, Edward Jensen, Alex Niemiera, and John Peterson; Silvics reprinted from Ag Handbook 654; range map source information