Platymiscium pinnatum (Jacq.) Dugand
Fabaceae
Common Name: Cristobal, Bleeding Heart
Occasional, briefly deciduous sub-canopy or canopy tree (20-30m), notable for is spectacular displays of bright yellow flowers as well as for the rich, reddish-brown color of its highly prized hardwood.
Description: Cristobal has a mostly straight and regular, cylindrical trunk (60cm or more) that supports and open, airy, spreading crown. The bole is covered with rough, brown bark that is divided into plates by prominent, vertical fissures.
Cristobal’s large leaves (30cm x 14cm) are imparipinnate and oppositely arranged, each composed of 5, dark green, ovoid leaflets. Foliage is shed, more or less completely, in late February or March. Briefly bare, new twig growth rapidly ensues with expanding leaves appearing alongside flower racemes. These latter structures, emerging from the sides of the new twigs, form large racemes containing hundreds of small, yellow blossoms.
Having the typical shape of other flowers (1.5cm) of the pea family, each is bright yellow with five unequal petals, a cup-shaped, fused green calyx, ten stamens, and a central pistil. The flowering period is brief, lasting less than two weeks.
Fruits (9cm by 3cm) grow rapidly thereafter. Each is a flat, ovoid papery pod containing a single, flattened seed. Though reaching full size rapidly, the green pods persist in the tree crowns for nearly a year, before finally drying out, turning brown, and being dispersed by the winds of the following dry season.
Similar Species: Many trees in the large Lonchocarpus genus sport flowers and leaves of similar size and shape to those of Cristobal, however these trees tend to be of much smaller stature and their flowers are purple or violet. Guachipelin (Diphysa robinioides) – also of the Papilionaceae, has yellow flowers like Cristobal, but it is a much smaller tree and its leaves are alternate with very small (1cm) oval leaflets.
Natural History: Cristobal flowers are frequented by diurnal insects (bees) and its light, papery seed pods are wind dispersed. Flowering coincides with the tree’s brief deciduous periods, helping to make the yellow crowns stand out from the surrounding environment.
Uses: Aside from being an attractive ornamental speices, Cristobal wood is valued for its rich color and it is used in marimbas, flooring and furniture (Poveda, 1975).
Distribution: In Costa Rica, Cristobal is found along the lowlands of the Pacific slope. The tree ranges from Central America to northern South America.
Images: Tree Tree2 Trunk Leaf Leaf2 Flower Flower2 Flower3 Fruit Fruit2 Fruit3 Wood
Trees of Costa Rica's Pacific Slope 
