Caesalpinia L. Sp. Pl. 380: (1753) Trees, shrubs or woody scandent, prickly climbers, rarely unarmed. Stipules present or not, minute to foliaceous, deciduous or persistent. Leaves alternate, bipinnately compound, rachis armed with prickles below the insertion of pinnae and pinnula; leaflets opposite and rarely alternate. Flowers zygomorphic, bisexual or sometimes unisexual, stalked, yellow, red, showy. Inflorescence of axillary to terminal or supra-axillary, panicled racemes. Bracts mostly deciduous, bracteoles absent. Hypanthium usually obliquely short-cupular or funnel shaped. Sepals 5, free or connate at the base, unequal, imbricate or valvate, the lowest one largest and cucullate, clasping the others, often reflexed during anthesis. Petals 5, free, unequal, spathulate, spreading, usually orbicular with a distinct claw, the standard petal differing in shape and size with a liguliform appendage. Stamens 10, free, delicate; filaments hairy; anthers oblong, uniform, versatile, dorsifixed, split longitudinally. Ovary sessile to sub-sessile; style filliform; stigma terminal, oblique. Pods very variable, oblong, ligulate, thin and flat or thick and subturgid, smooth or spiny. Seeds orbicular to oblong, globose or flat, usually exalbuminous. 2. Caesalpinia cacalaco Humb. ex Bonpl., Pl. Aeqninoct, 2: 173, t. 137 (1809); Sen & Nasker, Bull. Bot. Surv. Ind. 7: 36 (1965); Sanjappa, Legumes of Ind.: 13 (1992). An unarmed, low spreading shrubby tree of about 4-5 m high. Leaves compound, bipinnate. Rachis 3.5-12.0 cm long; pinnae 3-6 pairs, c 2.0-5.5 cm long; leaflets 3-5 pairs, c 1.0-2.2 × 0.6-1.5 cm, obovate, often retuse, puberulent, pale beneath. Inflorescence of large terminal panicles, c 20-32 cm long. Flowers 1.5 cm across, pedicels 1.0-1.5 cm long, jointed about 0.5 cm apart from the base of calyx, flower buds subtended by bract, c 7-10 × 1-2 mm, linear oblong, cuspidate. Calyx sub-campanulate, sepals 5, lower sepals hooded, clasping the others, greenish, golden brown pubescent. Petals 5, yellow or orange, stripped with red. Stamens 10, free; filaments flattened near the base, reddish or grey, bearded at lower half; anthers ovate, purple or brown. Pods cylindrical, c 15 cm long, many seeded. Seeds separated by equal number of constriction in the wall of the pods. Flowering and fruiting : January - August.