The Pink Silk Tree (Albizia julibrissin) is a deciduous flowering tree in the Fabaceae family. It is also known as the Persian Silk Tree, the Pink Mimosa, or the Night Sleeper. It was previously classified as a Mimosa, but it is not related to the Mimosa.
It is native to Asia, especially in Iran and Azerbaijan and across to China.
It grows to 5-16 metres (16-52 feet) tall with arching branches.
The leaves are 20-45 centimetres (8-18 inches) long and 12-25 centimetres (5-10 inches) wide, dividing into 6-12 pairs of pinnae which have 20-30 pairs of leaflets.
Its leaves close during rain and at night (the leaflets bow downwards).
The flowers are dense inflorescences with a white base and white or pink stamens that look like silk threads.
The fruit is a flat, brown pod, about 10-20 centimetres (4-8 inches) long with several seeds inside.
It blooms in summer.
Photographed in Paris, France, July 2021.
Photographer: Martina Nicolls
MARTINA NICOLLS