Bauhinia Variegated, Kachnar, Orchid Tree - 0.5 kg Seeds

Kachnar or the Orchid Tree (Bauhinia variegata) is a popular small-to-medium deciduous tree grown across India for its showy, orchid-like flowers in shades of pink, mauve and white. The distinctive bilobed leaves resemble a camel's footprint, and the tree flowers prolifically from late winter into spring, often while nearly leafless.

Native to India and Southeast Asia, it thrives in the plains and lower hills throughout the country and is widely planted as an avenue and garden ornamental. Beyond its beauty, the unopened flower buds are cooked as a vegetable (kachnar), the bark is used in traditional medicine, and the blooms attract butterflies and bees.

• Family: Fabaceae (Caesalpinioideae)
• Native region: India and Southeast Asia
• Mature height: 10-12 m
• Growth rate: Moderate to fast

Collect mature pods and extract the flat brown seeds, then soak them in water for 24 hours before sowing. Sow about 1 cm deep in nursery bags filled with a loose, well-drained mix; germination typically takes 1-2 weeks. Harden off and transplant the saplings into the ground at the onset of the monsoon.