Sowing months
Jun–Jul
Sunlight
Shade to part shade
Water
Regular; never let it dry out
Mature size
7–10 m
First harvest
Flowers from year five
Family
Fabaceae
Where it grows
ground
Good for
beauty, healing
Sow in
monsoon
Care
Not the tall column sold as "ashoka" — that is a false ashoka.
The true ashoka — orange flower clusters on a small shade-loving tree of wet forest.
Growing it
Not the tall column sold as "ashoka" — that is a false ashoka.
What it is for
Bark preparations by tradition; the flowering tree of temple courtyards.