How is it different from purple kachnar?

It's a smaller, more compact shrub with pure white flowers, while purple kachnar (Bauhinia purpurea) and Bauhinia variegata grow into larger trees with pink-purple blooms.

Why is it called an 'orchid tree'?

Its broad-petalled flowers have a delicate, orchid-like appearance, though the plant is unrelated to true orchids.

✿Caesalpiniaceae · Bauhinia

Safed Kachnar / White 'Orchid' Tree

Bauhinia acuminata

Also known as Dwarf White Bauhinia, Butterfly-Tree, Hawaiian Orchid Tree, Hong Kong Orchid Tree, Purple Camel's Foot, White Bauhinia, Kaa-Long, Snowy Orchid

ShruboutdoorMedicinal

Habit: Shrub
Found in India: Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra & more
Flowering: Throughout the year

Identify this plant with SASYA

How to identify Safed Kachnar

Identify Safed Kachnar by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.

Look for a shrub habit.
Confirm leaf type: Bilobed (two leaflets, often butterfly-shaped).
Confirm flower colour: White.
Confirm fruit type: Legume.
In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: Throughout the year.
In India, compare location records such as Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana and nearby regions.
Confirm it sits within the Caesalpiniaceae family pattern, then compare close relatives before deciding it is Safed Kachnar.

Plant Details

Scientific name: Bauhinia acuminata
Genus: Bauhinia
Family: Caesalpiniaceae
Habit: Shrub
Habitat: Planted
Habitat type: Cultivated
Native to: Tropical southeast Asia
Distribution: India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, China, Brunei, Indonesia, Sierra Leone, Thailand
Found in India: Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Assam, Karnataka, Odisha, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Goa, Haryana, Meghalaya, Puducherry, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh
Flowering & fruiting: Throughout the year
Conservation status: Least Concern (LC)

Leaf characters

Leaf type: Bilobed (two leaflets, often butterfly-shaped)recorded

Typical of the family

Arrangement: Alternate
Margin: Entire
Venation: Pinnate

Characters marked “recorded” are for Safed Kachnar itself; the rest are typical of the Caesalpiniaceae family.

Flower & fruit characters

Flower colour: Whiterecorded
Fruit type: LegumerecordedA dry pod that splits open along two seams (typical of the pea/bean family).“The fruit is a pod 7.5 to 15 centimetres (3 to 6 in) long and 1.5 to 1.8 centimetres (1⁄2 to 3⁄4 in) broad.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Typical of the family

Flower symmetry: Zygomorphic (bilaterally symmetrical)
Inflorescence: Raceme
Fruit: Legume

Characters marked “recorded” are for Safed Kachnar itself; the rest are typical of the Caesalpiniaceae family — flowering plants only.

Local Names

Hindi: सफ़ेद कचनार Safed Kachnar,बहिनिया अकुमिनेटा bahiniya akumineta
Bengali: Shwetkanchan, শ্বেতকাঞ্চন
Tamil: வெள்ளை மந்தாரை Vellai mandaarai, மந்தாரை
Telugu: తెల్ల బంగారం చెట్టు
Kannada: ಬಿಳಿಮಂದಾರ Bili mandaara, ಬಿಳಿಕಂಚುವಾಳ Bili kanchuvaala
Malayalam: Mandaaram, വെള്ളമന്ദാരം, Bauhinia acuminata

Safed Kachnar in India

This flowering shrub, known as सफ़ेद कचनार Safed Kachnar (Hindi), வெள்ளை மந்தாரை Vellai mandaarai (Tamil), తెల్ల బంగారం చెట్టు (Telugu), ಬಿಳಿಮಂದಾರ Bili mandaara (Kannada), Mandaaram (Malayalam), Shwetkanchan (Bengali), is grown for its clusters of white, orchid-like flowers. Bauhinia acuminata is grown across Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, popular as a compact garden and hedge shrub.

Uses

It's grown almost entirely as an ornamental, valued for its abundant white flowers and compact size compared to other, larger flowering Bauhinia trees.

How to Identify Safed Kachnar

A compact shrub with the characteristic two-lobed, camel's-foot-shaped Bauhinia leaves. Flowers are pure white with five broad, slightly ruffled petals and prominent stamens, clustered at the branch tips, followed by long, flat pods.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is White 'Orchid' Tree called in different Indian languages?: सफ़ेद कचनार Safed Kachnar (Hindi); வெள்ளை மந்தாரை Vellai mandaarai (Tamil); తెల్ల బంగారం చెట్టు (Telugu); ಬಿಳಿಮಂದಾರ Bili mandaara (Kannada); Mandaaram (Malayalam); Shwetkanchan (Bengali).
How is it different from purple kachnar?: It's a smaller, more compact shrub with pure white flowers, while purple kachnar (Bauhinia purpurea) and Bauhinia variegata grow into larger trees with pink-purple blooms.
Why is it called an 'orchid tree'?: Its broad-petalled flowers have a delicate, orchid-like appearance, though the plant is unrelated to true orchids.

Botanical family

Caesalpiniaceae

Senna family

Safed Kachnar belongs to the Caesalpiniaceae family.

The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.

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Common plant problems

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Sources: GBIF — Bauhinia acuminata (India distribution & vernacular names) (CC BY 4.0) · Wikipedia — Bauhinia acuminata (background/comprehension only) (CC BY-SA 4.0)