When in bloom, there's no doubt about it: Colville's glory is a glorious show-stopper!

When immature, the inch-long buds are tightly closed, and the foot-long flower clusters look like fluorescent orange-colored grapes. Its sepals, the part of the flower that cover and protect the buds, are soft and velvety to the touch. The buds only open partway, not fully, and reveal darker orangey-red petals. The threadlike parts in the center, which produce and receive pollen, are bright yellow.

As flowering progresses, the overall color on the tree is subtly altered, from varying shades of orange to yellow. The showy flowers, of course, are nature's invitation to the pollinators. Birds and insects visit the flowers and pollinate them, getting nectar and pollen in return.

The tree is a legume, or member of the pea family, that can grow to 50 feet tall. It produces 8-inch-long, flat, woody fruits, with tan-colored seeds inside.

Colville's glory is native to Madagascar. This large island, fourth-largest in the world and roughly the size of Texas, lies along the southeast coast of Africa. Similar to the Hawaiian Islands, which evolved in isolation from the continents for millions of years, Madagascar lays claim to a variety of unique plant and animal life.

Like the bushy-tailed primates, the lemurs, Colville's glory is endemic, or naturally found, only in Madagascar. Other endemic plants that are now commonly grown in Hawai'i include, among others, the royal poinciana, or flame tree, and the traveler's tree. One of Madagascar's most famous plant contributions to the world is the rosy periwinkle. Today, it's a very common container plant and ground cover that people take for granted and hardly notice. However, this modest shrub is the source of life-saving and powerful anti-cancer drugs that have helped countless people.

To see the blooming Colville's glory and other Madagascar plants, take an invigorating one-hour hike inside the city-run Koko Crater Botanical Garden.

If you're on the Windward side of the island and prefer the setting of the cool, majestic Ko'olau Mountains, Ho'omaluhia Botanical Garden is another choice for you. You can drive close to where the trees grow, in the African section of the garden. Stop by the visitor center and ask for directions.

Either way, don't wait. The flowering period is only October to November.