Jacaranda
Sources last read 14 September 2026.
Difficult One of the harder ones, and one of the reasons the diagnosis tool exists.
Also called black poui.
Toxicity is partly unassessed
- Not assessed for cats. This plant is not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.
- Not assessed for dogs. This plant is not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.
- Not assessed for people. RHS publishes no harm statement for this plant. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.
What the sources say about its care
- Light
- Full sun, Partial shadeRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Water
- Well-drainedRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Humidity
No source read publishes a humidity figure for any plant on this site. What follows is general guidance for foliage plants.
ASHRAE recommends indoor relative humidity between 30% and 60% 30–60%Penn State Extension · read 13 September 2026- Temperature
How cold this tolerates, not what it prefers. No source read for this site publishes a preferred range for a plant indoors.
H1C — 5–10°C 5–10 °CRHS · read 13 September 2026- Soil
- Chalk, Clay, Loam, Sand; pH Acid or Alkaline or NeutralRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Toxic to cats
- Not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety.ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
- Toxic to dogs
- Not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety.ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
- Harmful to people
- No statement of harm to people is published for this plant; that absence is not evidence it is safe.RHS · read 13 September 2026
How it usually goes wrong
- Brown brittle margins with a green centre
On a jacaranda the browning starts furthest from the midrib and works inward, and it crumbles rather than smears. The centre of each leaf is untouched.
Transpiration rises as the air dries, and the tissue furthest from a vein loses first. Penn State Extension notes there is no single humidity figure that suits every indoor plant, which is why this site publishes a range rather than a number.
Telling it apart: When it started. Edges that browned as the heating came on point at air; edges that browned through a wet summer do not.
Penn State ExtensionDiagnose brown tips and edges on this Jacaranda- The canopy goes limp and the compost shrinks from the pot
The jacaranda loses its stiffness first at the tips of the newest growth, and the whole pot feels light for its size.
With well-drained soil taken past dry, there is nothing left for the roots to move, and the plant gives up its shape before it gives up its colour.
Telling it apart: The weight of the pot. Light and sagging is thirst; heavy and sagging is not.
RHSDiagnose drooping on this Jacaranda- Whitened areas where the sun falls longest
The jacaranda shows pale, dry patches only where direct sun reaches, often with a sharp edge between damaged and healthy tissue.
Sun through a window on a still day heats a leaf far above the air around it. Its source describes full sun, partial shade; the glass adds the heat that does the damage.
Telling it apart: The edge of the damage. Scorch has a sharp boundary; rot and infection have a soft, spreading one.
RHSDiagnose leaf drop on this Jacaranda
Not sure which it is? Ask the diagnosis questions for Jacaranda.
Routine care
- Propagation
- Seed, stem cuttingsNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Increase from seed or semi-ripe cuttings.RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Pruning
- Prune lightly; see pruning group 1.RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Pests and diseases
- Usually free of pests and diseases.RHS · read 13 September 2026
Move something and watch
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Photographs
About the plant
Jacaranda mimosifolia is a sub-tropical tree native to south-central South America that has been widely planted elsewhere because of its attractive and long-lasting violet-colored flowers. It is also known as the jacaranda, blue jacaranda, Nupur or black poui. Older sources call it J. acutifolia, but modern authorities usually classify it as J. mimosifolia.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · read 13 September 2026
- Native range
- Bolivia to NW. ArgentinaWorld Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026Bolivia, Paraguay, and northern ArgentinaNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026South AmericaRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Climate
- subtropicalWorld Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
- Growth form
- Perennial, Tree; habit ascending, erect, irregularNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Columnar upright (deciduous)RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Size
- Height 300–600 in; width 180–300 inNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Height Higher than 12 metres; spread wider than 8 metres after 10–20 yearsRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Flowering
- Flowers blue, purple/lavender; blooms in springNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Flowers blue in spring and summer; purple in spring and summerRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Uses
What sources record people using this plant for. A traditional or medicinal use listed here is a record of use, not advice to eat it or treat anything with it.
Used for medicine, fuel and wood.NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Plants with similar care
Sources
- ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
- Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
- NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
- Penn State Extension · read 13 September 2026
- RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Wikipedia · read 13 September 2026
What this does not cover
The figures above are what published sources say, not measurements of the plant in your room. They say nothing about your pot size, your water, the season, or how far from the glass the plant stands, and those decide more than any figure here does.
Humidity has no species figure because no source read for this site publishes one, and the only temperature published for this plant is a cold floor. The simulator fills those gaps with general figures for its kind of plant, marked as general and listed on how we read sources. Where a toxicity row says the plant was not assessed, that is the absence of a finding and not a finding of safety.
If something is already wrong, the diagnosis tool asks about the soil, the window and the watering, which is where the answer usually is.