Family: Fabaceae
Common name: Candle bush, Emperor’s candlesticks, Christmas candles, Candelabra bush, Empress candle plant, Candletree, Ringworm shrub, Craw-craw plant, Acapulo
It is very surprising that candle bush plants are mostly considered wild plants, since they have beautiful, ornamental, yellow flowers. Candle bush plants also have many medicinal uses.
Plant characteristics
They are small shrubs that grow to about 4 meters tall with an erect, green stem. The plant is short-lived and only lives for a year or two at most, but its fast propagation makes it behave like a perennial in open areas.
The seeds are dispersed by water or wind, and helps the plant spread over large areas in a short period of time.
Candle bush plants have pinnate, green leaves that are 50-70 cm long with 8-12 pairs of small leaflets. Each leaflet is 6-8 cm long with a longish-oval shape and rounded tips. Leaves usually close up at night.
Beautiful yellow flowers held aloft on long, thick stalks that are 15-30 cm long, are the distinguishing feature of Candle bush plants. The lower buds open first into glowing, yellow flowers; while the upper buds stay tightly packed and light orange in color.
The petals are curved slightly inwards at the tip, protecting the reproductive organs of the plant. Stamens and anthers are prominently visible.
The flowers then form long seedpods with 4 distinct sides, about 10-15 cm long, containing many diamond-shaped, dark brown seeds inside.
While the plants are still flowering, many long seedpods grow perpendicular to the stem, each plant producing hundreds of seeds in one season.
Growing tips
Candle bushes are usually not grown in home gardens because of their invasive nature. But if you have a corner of the garden that is unoccupied, you can fill it with beautiful yellow flowers in no time.
These plants need good sunlight throughout they day. They can stand drought and a variety of soil conditions, growing and thriving in backyards, open areas, roadsides, and deserted land.
They do not need regular watering, fertilization, or pest control. Here is a strong call to elevate the status of the Candle bushes from ignored weeds to charming garden plants.
Uses of Candle bushes
These plants have many medicinal uses in Ayurveda and herbal medicine, in the treatment of a variety of ailments like asthma, stomach pain, toothache, ringworms, eczema, scabies, herpes, typhoid, diabetes, burns, diarrhea, constipation, hepatitis, convulsions and fungal infections.
The plant is called Ringworm shrub because the leaves are ground and mixed with vegetable oil and applied on the skin, as a very effective remedy for ringworm infections.
Recent studies have shown that the plant has antibacterial, antifungal, anticancer, antidiabetic, antimalarial, and antiviral properties, making it a very valuable plant in the treatment of various diseases.
All parts of the plant like stem, leaves, flowers, and seeds as used as medicines in different parts of the world, like India, China, Brazil, Guatemala, Nigeria, and the Philippines.
Propagation
Propagation is from seeds and stem cuttings.
Seeds collected from mature seedpods can germinate well when sown in moist soil. Stem cuttings can be taken from healthy plants and planted in soil to take root.
