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10 plants worth knowing

Bangladesh

Bangladesh lies almost entirely on the world’s largest delta, built by the Ganges, the Brahmaputra and the Meghna, in a hot monsoon climate with torrential rains. Most of the original forest has given way to fields of rice and jute – the country’s “golden fibre” – and natural vegetation survives mainly in the mangroves of the Sundarbans, the sal forests of Madhupur and the moist forests of the Chittagong and Sylhet hills.

Hover over a plant to see on the map where it grows.

where it grows

  1. Blue star water lily 1

    aquatic plant · National flower of Bangladesh, a motif of the national emblem

    Blue star water lily

    Nymphaea nouchali

    A white shapla floating on water appears on the emblem of Bangladesh – a country where water is everywhere for half the year.
  2. Sundri 2

    tree

    Sundri

    Heritiera fomes

    The sundri is the tree that gave its name to the Sundarbans – the world’s largest mangrove forest and home of the Bengal tiger.
  3. Mango 3

    tree · National tree of Bangladesh

    Mango

    Mangifera indica

    In a mango grove at Mujibnagar in 1971, the first government of independent Bangladesh was sworn in.
  4. Jackfruit 4

    tree · National fruit of Bangladesh

    Jackfruit

    Artocarpus heterophyllus

    The jackfruit, the national fruit of Bangladesh, is the largest tree-borne fruit – it can weigh over 30 kg.
  5. Red silk-cotton tree 5

    tree

    Red silk-cotton tree

    Bombax ceiba

    In spring the leafless shimul trees are covered in thousands of red flowers – the herald of the Bengali spring.
  6. Rice 6

    crop

    Rice

    Oryza sativa

    “Fish and rice make a Bengali,” says the proverb; in Bangladesh rice sets the rhythm of life, the landscape and the festival calendar.
  7. White jute 7

    crop

    White jute

    Corchorus capsularis

    The “golden fibre” of Bangladesh – for centuries jute stems have been made into sacks, ropes and mats, and today eco-friendly bags too.
  8. Royal poinciana 8

    tree

    Royal poinciana

    Delonix regia

    Krishnochura – in May and June its fiery crowns light up the streets of Dhaka and village roads, celebrated in Bengali songs and poems.
  9. Silver date palm 9

    palm

    Silver date palm

    Phoenix sylvestris

    In winter “gachhi” climbers tap the trunks of this palm for sweet sap, which is boiled down into the famous khejur gur molasses.
  10. Areca palm 10

    palm

    Areca palm

    Areca catechu

    A slender palm whose nuts, wrapped in a betel leaf as “paan”, are offered to guests, at weddings and after a festive meal.