Eastern Redbud (Cercis canadensis )
Identifying Features
Plant Family: Fabaceae
Native Range: Eastern North America to Mexico
Leaf: deciduous, alternate, simple, heart-shaped, leaf margin smooth
Twig and Bud: dark, slender twigs zigzag, buds inconspicuous
Flower, Fruit and Seed: small pink/purple flowers in clusters along branches, seeds in flattened pods that brown as they age and often persist into winter
Bark: brown to gray with orange-brown inner bark, older bark is scaly
Shape and Mature Height: multi-trunked tree with rounded crown, mature height 20-30 feet
Garden Value and Considerations
Eastern Redbud is a small understory tree that cannot be missed in the early spring. When most other tree branches are still bare, its branches are adorned with pink, pea-like flowers. It is well-suited for garden use with many developed varieties. Redbuds are small and divide into multi-stemmed trees close to the ground. However, they are not especially long-lived trees, seldom living past 50 years.
Notes
Eastern redbuds are a valuable food source for early pollinators, including hummingbirds and many native bees. Bumble bee queens seek out redbuds to gather the pollen needed to start their colonies for the year. The leaves feed the caterpillars of many butterflies and moths. The buds and seed pods are eaten by song birds, such as the rose-breasted grosbeak.
