Kigelia pinnata, Kigelia africana
Family: Bignoniaceae
Sausage Tree
Origin: Tropical West Africa
This medium-to-large tree – up to 45FT in height – is grown in gardens less for its beauty than for its novelty value. It produces large, dark red flowers that hang from the crown of the tree and have a rather unpleasant odor. When they fall after a single night they are followed by sausage-like fruit that may be as long as 26″, weighing several kilograms, quite dramatic in overall effect. Kigelia is a forest tree and will grow in either sun or shade but requires a good deal of space and so may not be suitable for small gardens.
