{"title":"Bauhinia","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe genus Bauhinia is fairly large with over 200 generally tropic species around the world, which means they are unfamiliar to most of us in the temperate US. We have found Bauhinia yunnanensis and Bauhinia forficata to be cold hardy for us and are trialing several others to see if they might also be cold hardy. Bauhinia is in the pea family (Fabaceae) which means the plants fix nitrogen and fertilize the soil in which they grow. In the wild, bauhinia are trees or vines that can reach 35' or more, but here in our Raleigh garden they are dieback perennials that stay much shorter. In late summer, bauhinia plants flower with light pink\/purple or white flowers that are more orchid-like than pea-like (they are in a sub-genus that does not produce a keel).\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eBauhinia prefers full sun and slightly acidic soil. Generous amounts of water are needed to maximize growth, but well-drained soils are required for the roots to survive the winter without rotting. Try combining bauhinia with other hardy tropicals such as canna, musa, or curcuma to make a tropical paradise in your temperate garden. When you are ready to buy bauhinia for your perennial garden or home, we hope you'll check out our list of bauhinia for sale.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"bauhinia-forficata","title":"Bauhinia forficata","description":"\u003cp\u003eBauhinia forficata is one of only two species of the normally tropical orchid tree that survives long-term in our cold winters. Although the Brazilian Orchid tree survives for us, it does so as a dieback perennial and not as a 35' small tree that it becomes in more tropical regions. About the best we can expect in our Zone 7b climate is 8' of growth, which is adorned with Jeffersonia-like, bifurcate (two-lobed) leaves and further complemented, starting in September, with large, orchid-like, white flowers. Although Bauhinia forficata is a rainforest species, we have found it to fare quite well in average to dry soils. If that's not enough, the leaves are used to treat diabetes by lowering blood sugar levels...sweet!\u003c\/p\u003e ","brand":"Plant Delights Nursery","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":21028292677,"sku":"8009","price":29.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1527\/8799\/files\/Bauhinia-forficata.i-8009.s-66294.r-1_01af7477-0d19-4048-9665-abcb296915b4.jpg?v=1790707101"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1527\/8799\/collections\/bauhinia-banner-image_485e3085-1798-45f2-a2c3-2c8a8ff79aa5.jpg?v=1654522086","url":"https:\/\/www.plantdelights.sbs\/collections\/bauhinia.oembed","provider":"Plant Delights Nursery","version":"1.0","type":"link"}