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Tree · Samanea saman
Rain tree
IUCN LC · Least concern
A huge flat-topped shade tree with canopies that can spread more than thirty metres. Brought from tropical America, it is not native to India.
👀 How to recognise it
Feathery leaflets that fold shut at dusk and in rain - the name comes from that, and from the drip of sap-feeding insects beneath. Pink powder-puff flowers in April and May.
Where to see it
Bengaluru
The tree that roofs Cubbon Park and most of Bengaluru's older avenues, planted across the city under the Mysore state horticulture programme. The storm losses of recent years have pushed the city's tree officers toward native species for new avenues.
Cubbon Park · Lalbagh Botanical Garden