Samanea saman - Rain Tree

General Information Common Name  Rain Tree Scientific Name  Samanea saman Sun Tolerance  Full Sun Height  Up to 25 m (up to 82 ft) Spread  Up to 40 m (up to 132 ft) Growth Rate  Fast Bloom Time  Summer Color  Green, Yellow Flower Color  Yellow, Pink Type  Tree Native  South America, South Asia

Classification Kingdom  Plantae – Plants Subkingdom  Tracheobionta – Vascular plants Superdivision Spermatophyta – Seed plants Division  Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants Class  Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons Subclass  Rosidae Order  Fabales Family  Fabaceae – Pea family Genus  Samanea Merr. – Raintree Species  S. Saman

Samanea saman - Rain Tree

Samanea saman common name is Rain Tree. It is range extends from Mexico south to Peru and Brazil, but it has been widely introduced to South and Southeast Asia, as well as the Pacific Islands, including Hawaii. Common names include saman, rain tree and monkey-pod. Saman is a wide-canopied tree with a large symmetrical crown. It usually reaches a height of 25 m (82 ft) and a spread of 40 m (130 ft). The leaves fold in rainy weather and in the evening, hence the name "rain tree" and "five o'clock tree" (Pukul Lima) in Malay. The evergreen leaves are alternate, bipinnate, 25–40 cm long, with 2–6 pairs of pinnate, each of which bears 6–16 paired stalks-less leaflets, with a glandular dot between each pair. Flowers are produced near the end of twigs in clusters on a green hairy stalk with many small tubular pink or yellow flowers. The fruits are flat seed pods, black, 20–30 cm long, containing several oblong reddish-brown seeds about one cm long. The seed looks like monkey-pod. The name "rain tree" was coined in tropical India, especially Bengal. Its origin is the moisture that collects on the ground under the tree, largely the honeydew-like discharge of cicadas feeding on the leaves.

Trees are basically evergreen, but are native to areas of Central and South America that have pronounced dry seasons where the trees exhibit semi-deciduous tendencies. But in south Asia its behavior likes a deciduous tree. It is very fast growing large tree. So people like to plant it for fast harvest wood. It is full sun tree and in rainy season it grows very fast. 

One of the most important uses in Latin America is as a shade tree, especially in parks, pastures, and roadsides, because this species' leaflets fold together at night and in wet weather, allowing the rain to fall through, hence the grass can grow right up to the trunk. The wood is soft, lightweight and takes a beautiful finish but is often cross-grained and difficult to work. It is used for furniture, general construction, and interior trim, for boxes and crates, paneling, plywood, and veneer. In Central American oxcart wheels are made from cross sections of trunks.

Beautiful Rain Tree

Rain Tree Leaves

Leaves of Rain Tree

Rain Tree Flower Pink

Rain Tree Flowers Yellow

Rain Tree Green Pod

Rain Tree Pod

Rain Tree Seeds

Rain Tree Bark

Rain Tree Huge Log

Rain Tree Logs

Rain Tree Furniture

Rain Tree Furniture

Rain Tree as Ornamental Tree