Taxonomy
- Order: Fabales
- Family: Fabaceae
- Genus: Cercis
- Species: canadensis
Common Names: Eastern Redbud,
Redbud
General Description/Identifying
Characteristics:
©http://plants.usda.gov
Eastern Redbud is a native, perennial, deciduous
tree or shrub. The plants may vary in size from about 16
feet tall in the open sun to over 40 feet in the shade.
The trees produce hundreds of small pink pea flowers in the very
early spring, even before other trees have leafed out. The
leaves are heart-shaped with a broad point, and have a width of
about 2 to three and a half inches. New leaves are light
green that darken with age and finally turn yellow in the fall.
Habitat:
Eastern Redbud grows in the forest understory in the moist
rich soils of valleys and slopes and in hardwood forests.
They also occur along the banks of streams, in ravines, on
bluffs, in open rocky woods, and abandoned farmland.
Geographical Distribution/Range:
©http://plants.usda.gov
Eastern Redbud can be found in the eastern
United States from New Jersey in the north to central Florida,
west to southern Texas, and north to southeast Nebraska.
Their elevation range goes up to 2,200'.
Interesting Facts:
Eastern Redbud is widely cultivated as an ornamental because
of the plants showy springtime flowers and beautiful
heart-shaped leaves. They are graceful with arching
branches that look lovely as a specimen tree, in groupings, and
in shrub borders. The flowers can be eaten as a salad, or
fried. According to myth, Judas Iscariot hung himself on
the related Judas tree of western Asia and southern Europe,
after which the white flowers turned red with shame or blood.
References used:
http://www.enature.com
and http://plants.usda.gov |
