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Indian Bean Tree Planted for Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, Queen’s Park

Charnwood Borough Council
Charnwood Borough Council | 2022 | Loughborough

Indian Bean Tree Planted as Part of Queen’s Green Canopy

idverde and Charnwood Borough Council were delighted to support the Friends of Queen’s Park with the planting of an Indian Bean Tree in celebration of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. The tree, kindly donated by the Friends, will form part of the Queen’s Green Canopy, a tree planting initiative that invites people from across the United Kingdom to “Plant a Tree for the Jubilee”.

More projects for Charnwood Borough Council

Indian Bean Tree

The Indian Bean (Catalpa bignonoides) tree is a beautiful, medium-sized tree that will grow up to approximately 18 metres. Contrary to its common name, the tree does not originate in India, and it does not grow beans!

The tree has large, heart-shaped velvety leaves even on young trees. The bright green leaves are very late to emerge, often not appearing until late June and will turn a beautiful butter yellow in the autumn until they are killed off by the first frost. The nectar-rich, orchid-shaped flowers, which appear in July, are produced in large clusters and can often be so numerous that they obscure the leaves on the tree.

Interestingly, the leaves also secrete nectar, a rather unusual characteristic for leaves, by means of tiny glands in the axils of the primary veins. This makes the tree particularly attractive to pollinating insects – bees in particular – that will feed on valuable nectar even when flowering has finished.

About the project

The Friends of Queen’s Park, idverde and Charnwood Borough Council attended the tree planting event on Wednesday 23rd March. Queen’s Park is a much loved, small Victorian urban park in the heart of Loughborough that covers approximately four hectares (10 acres).  It provides an extensive area of mature and open landscaping in a relatively self-contained space with well-defined boundaries. The Park’s creation was prompted by Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee in June 1879. This, therefore, makes the planting of a tree to mark Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee in 2022 within the park even more appropriate. 

“We would like to thank The Friends of Queen’s Park for the very kind donation of such a particularly beautiful tree for the park in celebration of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. The fact that the tree is such a valuable asset for biodiversity will mean that not only the local community can enjoy the beauty of the tree, but so can our local bees too!” – Nicola Clarke idverde Midlands Development Manager.