Albizia  Albizia is a genus of more than 160 species of mostly fast-growing subtropical and tropical trees and shrubs in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the family Fabaceae. The genus is pantropical, occurring in Asia, Africa, Madagascar, America and Australia, but mostly in the Old World tropics. In some locations, some species are considered weeds. They are commonly called silk plants, silk trees, or sirises. The obsolete spelling of the generic name - with double 'z' - is still common, so the plants may be called albizzias. The generic name honors the Italian nobleman Filippo degli Albizzi, who introduced "Albizia julibrissin" to Europe in the mid-18th century. Some species are commonly called mimosa, which more accurately refers to plants of genus "Mimosa". Species from southeast Asia used for timber are sometime termed East Indian walnut. They are usually small trees or shrubs with a short lifespan, though the famous "Samán del Guère" near Maracay in Venezuela is a huge "Albizia saman" specimen several hundred years old. The leaves are pinnately or bipinnately compound. The small flowers are in bundles, with stamens much longer than the petals. The stamens are usually showy, although in some species such as "A. canescens" the flowers are inconspicuous. Unlike those of "Mimosa", "Albizia" flowers have many more than 10 stamens. "Albizia" can also be told apart from another large related genus, "Acacia", by its stamens, which are joined at the bases instead of separate. Numerous species placed in "Albizia" by early authors were eventually moved to other genera, most notably "Archidendron". Other genera of Ingeae ("Abarema", "Archidendropsis", "Blanchetiodendron", "Calliandra", "Cathormion", "Enterolobium", "Havardia", "Hesperalbizia", "Hydrochorea", "Pararchidendron", "Paraserianthes", "Pseudosamanea" and "Serianthes") have also received their share of former "Albizia" species, as have the Mimoseae "Newtonia" and "Schleinitzia".