Does a Jacaranda Smell?

Fragrance

• Jacarandas often grow to a 40-foot height with a comparable spread. Flower bunches, or panicles, typically appear after some early spring leaf drop. This floral display against bare branches makes the flowers that much more brilliant. Although prolific, these flowers only give off a slight fragrance. Because jacarandas use the late spring and early summer for high density blossoms, the weak fragrance wafts along warm breezes to potential pollinators.

Pollination

• Jacaranda trees bear both male and female reproductive parts, making them a monoecious species. Because they do not require another jacaranda tree nearby for successful pollination, these trees do not need to produce nectar with a strong scent to entice numerous pollinators. The lack of strong fragrance saves energy as the jacaranda redirects its efforts into blossom development. However, jacarandas cannot self-pollinate -- they still need insect activity to move pollen from the male flowers to the female blossoms.

Color Attraction

• Plants using strong scents are often pollinated at night or have high competition with daytime pollinators. As a common pollinator, bees use their visual acuity to seek out jacaranda flowers and nectar. Because jacaranda trees use dense blossom panicles, bees are attracted to these trees by the bright purple colors, rather than their scent -- lavender is one of the main colors that bees easily identify. As the insect travels among the flowers, it moves pollen from the male anthers to the female stigma. The pollen grains eventually form a tube down into the flower ovule where fertilization begins, achieving cross-pollination across the same tree canopy.

Flower Shape and Quantity

• Each flower is approximately 2 inches long with a tubular shape. Pollinators enter the flower and are well-hidden as they feed -- they may hide from predators and provide pollination at the same time. The sheer quantity of flowers also makes a strong scent unnecessary for reproductive success. As the flowers become pollinated, jacarandas produce seed pods housing lightweight seeds for wind dispersal. Your panicles often turn into seed pod wind chimes since pollinators often visit closely spaced flowers to save energy during nectar collection. The spent flowers drop to the ground while still purple, creating a carpet of color.