STATE FLOWER AND TREE

LET'S KNOW MORE ABOUT THE STATE FLOWER AND TREE OF THE LAND OF COCONUTS.

FLOWER - CASSIA FISTULA

The flowering plant Cassia fistula is commonly known as Golden Shower, Purging Cassia or Indian Laburnum. It is a native of the Indian subcontinent and adjacent regions of Southeast Asia and it ranges from eastward throughout India to Myanmar and Thailand and south to Sri Lanka and southern Pakistan.



The Golden Shower tree is locally known by the popular name Kanikonna is the member of subfamily Caesalpiniaceae of the legume family Fabaceae. This popular ornamental plant is also used in herbal medicines. It is not only the state flower of Kerala but also both the National Tree and National Flower of the country Thailand. With deciduous leaves and pinnate with three to eight pairs of leaflets, growing to 10-20 m (33-66 ft) tall with fast growth the Golden Shower Tree is a medium-sized tree. The each flower of the tree are with five yellow petals of equal size and shape which are produced in pendulous racemes 20-40 cm.

The 30 to 60 cm long and 1.5 to 2.5 cm broad fruit is a legume with a pungent odour and it contains several seeds. The strong and very durable heartwood of the tree has been used to construct 'Ehela Kanuwa', a site at Adams Peak which is situated in Sri Lanka. The ornamental plant grown in tropical and subtropical areas blooms in the late spring with trees being covered with yellow flowers and sometimes it makes the leaves of the trees to hide under the yellow colour. These trees grow well in dry climate or in full sun, especially in hot summers and hence it is salt-tolerant and drought-tolerant and also tolerate the light brief frost. But if the cold persists it can get damaged very easily. There are so many species of butterflies and bees which are known to be pollinators of Cassia fistula flowers especially carpenter bees. Also in some parts of India, the people used to eat the flowers of the Golden Shower Tree and also the leaves of the tree are used to supplement the diets of cattle, sheep and goats fed with low-quality forages. It is also known as Aragvadha ( disease killer) in Ayurvedic medicine.

The state flower have very much importance in the State especially ritual importance in the Vishu festival.

STATE TREE - COCONUT TREE

Cocos nucifera is the only known living species of the genus Cocos and it is a member of the Palm tree family. The whole coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit can be referred by the term 'coconut'.After the three indentations on the coconut shell that resemble facial features, the term coconut derived from the Portuguese and Spanish word coco which means head or skull. Coconuts have various uses and it is very much important in the Kerala State. Hence it is the State Tree of the beautiful state Kerala. The state's name itself derived from the relation between the land and coconut trees. The two Malayalam words Kera and Alam are joined together to get the name Kerala or Keralam which means Coconut and Land respectively. Thus the southwestern Indian state is also known as 'The Land of Coconuts or Coconut Trees'. There is no Kerala without coconut trees and the production of coconuts plays a major role in the economy and culture of the holy land.

All parts of the 'Kalpa Vriksham' or 'Coconut Tree' is useful in some or other way. Cocos nucifera is unavoidable part of Kerala in many ways like coconut oil, coconut toddy, coconut milk, coconut water, coconut is used in many Kerala dishes, and the tree leaves are used to make baskets, doormats, sheds, husk for making coir, the shells for making ladles etc.

Coconut tree is also a part of culture and tradition of Kerala.