Tree Description:
A small or medium-sized tree, usually less than 40 feet tall and a trunk to 12" in diameter, with arching branches that form a wide, flat-topped crown.
Range/Site Description:
Occurs in East Texas, west to Austin and Dallas, usually on well-drained soils alongin forests or at the edge of the woods or planted as a landscape specimen.
Leaf:
Alternate, simple, heart-shaped, 3" to 5" long and wide, leaf edge smooth; upper surface dull, dark green, and lighter beneath, turning yellow in the fall.
Flower:
One of the first trees to bloom in early spring, the flowers appear before the leaves as conspicuous, pink to purplish, pea-shaped flowers in clusters along the twigs and small branches.
Fruit:
A flattened, many-seeded pod, 2" to 4" long and 0.5" wide, tapering at the ends, reddish during the summer and brown when ripe, often hanging on the tree through the following winter.
Bark:
Reddish-brown, smooth when young, but developing a scaly texture and then long, narrow plates and shallow fissures on older trunks.
Wood:
Heavy, hard, not strong, rich dark-brown in color, and of little commercial importance; cultivated in the nursery trade as a landscape tree.
Similar Species:
Texas redbud (Cercis canadensis var. texensis) occurs in Central Texas and Oklahoma and has glossy, leathery leaves.
Interesting Facts:
Sometimes called "Judas-tree" for its resemblance to a Mediterranean relative, Cercis siliquastrum, from which the disciple Judas Iscariot supposedly hanged himself after betraying Christ.
