KENTUCKY COFFEE-TREE
Gymnocladus dioica
CAESALPINIA FAMILY (Caesalpiniaceae)
Description
This native tree grows up to 100 feet tall. The leaves are twice (bipinnately) compound with oval, pointed leaflets (A). The purple and white tube flowers form upright clusters (racemes) (C). The fruit is a thick, greenish-yellow pod brown, which turns brown (F). The fruit can often be seen on bare trees during winter (F,G). The gray bark has narrow, scaly ridges, often turned up on one side (B). In comparison, Honey Locust (Gleditsia triacanthos) has similar-looking bark, but it has thorns, rounded leaflets, and elongated, flat seed pods.
Occurrence
Grows in rich woods, along streams and open wooded hillsides, flowering in May and June. In Fontenelle Forest, uncommon in Mill Hollow. At Neale Woods, uncommon in Raccoon Hollow.
Disclaimer: The content of NatureSearch is provided by dedicated volunteer Naturalists of Fontenelle Nature Association who strive to provide the most accurate information available. Contributors of the images retain their copyrights. The point of contact for this page
is: Roland Barth.
|
|
