Pink Tabebuia

This beautiful flowering tree is in bloom (in Wellington, FL) now. I’m planning to use this in my landscape up against the wall of the house next door.

There are so many beautiful plants in Florida. To help pick which ones I should include in my landscape I put together a set of criteria. These are the things I’m looking for:

- low maintenance – doesn’t grow too fast, spread, invade, doesn’t require lots of pruning or fertilizers

- drought tolerant – winter is very dry here, and there are often watering restrictions

- have good wind resistance – don’t want it to go down with the hurricanes

- disease resistant – no known pests, or diseases

- long lived – I don’t want to have to redo my yard every few years

- look good in the winter months when I am here (attractive foliage and/or bloom)

- in scale for a small yard on a zero lot line

- right exposure – right now we have no shade except from our house and the one next door

- not toxic since my dog, Emily eats everything

That sure narrows things down. Since the Pink Tabebuia fits most of these requirements, its worth a try. Here’s more details on it:

The clusters of trumpet shaped flowers are lavender/pink with a yellow throat. It is native to Brazil, and grows in USDA hardiness zones 10 & 11. We’re zone 10 here in Wellington.
The tree looks great where you want to attract attention - alongside a formal driveway or in a mixed border. It can be messy underneath when the flowers fall as you can see in the top picture. The pink tabebuia blooms on bare wood. It loses its leaves briefly during the dry, sub-tropical winter. It flowers in January – February for about 3 weeks. After flowering long, glossy seed pods will hang on for several weeks. The tree will quickly set out new leaves.

It should be grown in full sun, in well-drained soil. Established trees are highly drought tolerant, and also pest resistant. It is a moderate to fast grower. Young trees grow about 4 feet per year, and at maturity will reach a height of 30 feet and a width of 25 feet. It has moderate wind tolerance, and little tolerance to salt. It should be fertilized after new leaves emerge. Any pruning is best done after the tree flowers. Trees should be trained to a single trunk, and staked until they are 6-8 feet tall.

What a beauty! When you drive down the street, you can't help but notice the 'Pink Tab'.