PlantPeers
Back to Catalog
Markhamia lutea
Bignoniaceae FAMILY Least Concern

Markhamia lutea

Markhamia lutea

Edibility
0/5
Medicinal
3/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitEvergreen Tree
GrowthFast

Markhamia lutea is a plant of the moist tropics, where it is found at elevations from 700 - 2,000 metres[1, 2]. It is found in areas where the mean maximum and minimum temperatures fall within the range 18 - 28°c, though it can tolerate 14 - 32°c[2]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall of 800 - 2,000mm, tolerating 600 - 2,400mm and grows in both seasonally dry and all year round rainfall areas[2]. Grows best in a sunny position[2]. Succeeds in a range of soil types, including heavy, acidic clays, so long as they are well-drained[1, 2]. Established plants are drought resistant[2]. Prefers a pH in the range 4.5 - 7, tolerating 4 - 7.5[2]. Trees are fairly wind-resistant[1]. Young trees can grow rapidly in good forest soils, with annual height increases of more than 2 metres[3]. The plant has a long taproot[3]. The plant responds well to coppicing and pollarding[3, 1].

Propagation

Seed - it stores well at room temperature, but does best when sown fresh[3, 1]. It usually germinates readily after sowing, though germination rates are often less than 50%[1]. It will probably germinate better if sown in a sunny position and the seed left uncovered - though be careful to ensure it does not dry out[1]. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Markhamia+lutea>

Pollinators

Bees

References

  1. [1]Seed Leaflets — Various · Forest & Landscape. Denmark · http://en.sl.life.ku.dk/Publikationer/Udgivelser/PopulaerPublikationer.aspx?katid={D28373CC-6EF3-4EF8-B097-6D83FABF209E}&serieid={9F1C3DB1-6E7B-4CF1-AF53-F480B0CB40EF}&sort=title ↩︎A series of leaflets, jointly produced by the University of Copenhagen and the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, focussing on seed information for a number species, but also giving a lot of other information about each plant.
  2. [2]Ecocrop — http://ecocrop.fao.org/ecocrop/srv/en/home ↩︎Basic information on a wide range of useful plants, plus details of environmental needs where available.
  3. [3]World Agroforesty Centre — http://www.worldagroforestry.org/ ↩︎An excellent online database of a huge range of trees giving very good information on each plant - its uses, ecology, identity, propagation, pests etc.
  4. [4]The Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa. — Burkil. H. M. · Royal Botanic Gardens; Kew. · 1985 - 2004 ↩︎Brief descriptions and details of the uses of over 4,000 plants. A superb, if terse, resource, it is also available electronically on the Web - see http://www.aluka.org/
  5. [5]Field Guide to the Moist Forest Trees of Tanzania. — Lovett J.C.; Ruffo C.K.; Gereau R.E.; Taplin J.R.D · Frontier · http://www.york.ac.uk/res/celp/webpages/projects/ecology/tree%20guide/introduction.htm · ISBN 1-873070-33-0 ↩︎A lovely little book giving a basic identification guide to more than 650 species of trees growing in Tanzania. It is also available to view on the internet.
  6. [6]IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — http://www.iucnredlist.org/ ↩︎A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat.