风铃木花姿处处开。Blossoms of Tabebuia Pentaphylla

Did you ever wonder what's the name of that tall magnificent tree growing along the roadsides or in the the park all covered with gorgeous pale pink (or white) flowers?

“察觉”风铃木的存在不是今年的事。然而，风铃木这类花木，在小流氓的眼里是“往往来不及好好欣赏，当你想起它的时候，却已经消失得无踪无影了”。情况就像一首叫《青春小鸟》的民歌“。。。太阳下山明早依旧爬上来，花儿谢了明年还是一样的开”。因此，如果以时效来类别花木，风铃木可以因为一年才开花一次而被分类为“年度花”。

风铃木植株外观会随著四季变化而变换样貌：

• 冬季：落叶期，全株叶片掉落彷若枯枝；
• 春季：枝头上陆续绽放风铃状花朵（故称风铃木），花朵属圆锥花序，故盛开时像粉色的花球挂满全株枝头；
• 夏季：开始萌发嫩芽绿叶，换上葱绿外衣并发挥遮阴的效用；
• 秋季：枝叶繁旺，绿意盎然。

Tabebuia tree is generally believed to have been introduced to Malaysia from Central and South America through India by the British administration during the early 18th century.

风铃木因为开满花后相似日本的樱花而被民众冠上“大马樱花”之名。风铃木会趁着嫩叶还没发芽之前，大量怒放颜色鲜艳的花朵，因此每年3月开始便能在路旁或住家看见风铃木的踪影。一片花海不但叫人惊艳，而且爱不释眼。据报道，槟州市政句也于2009年分别在植物园、石矿公园等地区栽种了100棵风玲木树苗，希望花开季节能够吸引许多“好摄之徒”来拍摄。

那天，小流氓在途中也被马路旁那粉红或白色花朵绽放整个树梢的风铃木所吸引，也特地用了单眼拍摄了一些照片以作留念。此乃小流氓除金马伦之旅第一次那么认真地“摄花”。然而，风铃木花期非常短，乍開乍落只有10天左右。以下是小流氓2014年为风铃木留下的倩影 :

Tabebuia has more than 100 species, and in Malaysia, Tabebuia pentaphylla is most common.

When the flowers float down in a strong breeze, they cover the ground below like a dense soft pale pink (or white) carpet.

The White Tabebuia aka Tabebuia Pallida with the distinct yellow throat

In Malaysia, it is popularly known as "Cherry Blossoms or Sakura" tree and "tissue-paper" tree.

根据马来西亚森林研究所 (Forest Institute of Malaysia, FILM) 的资料，栽种在马来西亚的风铃木学名为“Tabebuia pentaphylla”，原参于中美和南美洲(Central and South America)。风铃木花共有三种颜色，栽种在马来西亚的多是粉红色（学名： Tabebuia Rosea）和白色（学名：Tabebuia Pallida），而其中黄色（学名：Tabebuia Argentea）品种比较罕见。“Tabebuia pentaphylla”里的属名“Pentaphylla”因花杆会长出五枚叶子而来，也是拉丁文里“penta（五）”，“phylla（叶）的意思。

"Tabebuia pentaphylla is native to Central and South America and is popularly planted along roadsides and as a garden ornamental plant. In Malaysia, Tabebuia is also known as the “Cherry Blossoms of Penang” after its pink flowers which are much like the cherry blossoms of Japan. There are two colors of Tabebuia pentaphylla often planted in Malaysia, which is the pink and white varieties. The species name pentaphylla refers to the five leaves in each stalk, where “penta” means “five” and “phylla” means leaf in Latin. Other local nicknames for the plant include  “tissue paper tree”, referring to its thin petals.  The tree is also known as ipê rosa in South American countries. (Source)"

Usually, at the height of about 3-4m from the ground, the trunk opens up into two or three erect branches supporting a wide and well-proportioned crown. As a modest size tree with seasonal profuse flowering and roots which are not especially destructive for roads and sidewalks (Source)

风铃木特征：
学名：Tabebuia pentaphylla
别名：粉风铃木、洋红风铃木、巴拉圭风铃木
科名：紫葳科
属名：风铃木属

原产地：原产热带南美州，是美洲热带有名的观赏树木

树茎：株高6～10公尺。树性强，移植易。

叶子：掌状复叶对生，小叶3～5枚，具长柄，革质，有锯齿，阔卵形值长椭圆形，有尖尾，长8～15公分，全缘。
花卉：总状花序，花冠钟型，径3～5公分，5裂，裂片曲皱。