Powder Puff
Scientific & Common Names:
Calliandra inaequilatera, commonly known as the powder puff tree or fairy duster
Native to:
South Africa
Description:
This small, hardy tree is actually a large, fast-growing, wide shrub that can be trained to grow like a tree on a single trunk. These trees can grow up to 12 feet and branch out wide with very attractive 2 inch leaves that emerge as a flushed pink color but mature to dark green. Their oblong shaped leaves fold up to ‘sleep’ at night. The flower buds are as unusual as the flowers, and look like little rounded berry clusters. When in bloom, generally in the fall and winter, these trees produce lots of slightly fragrant, showy, 3″ spherical flower heads consisting of hundreds of red, pink or white stamens that look like little powder puffs, and are attractive to honeybees, butterflies and hummingbirds.