Wikimedia Commons
Fabaceae
Golden Chain Tree
Laburnum × watereri 'Vossii'
Pensive beauty, abandoned joy.
- Family
- Fabaceae
- Genus
- Laburnum
- Native to
- Garden hybrid (parents from southern Europe)
- Bloom season
- Late Spring
- Type
- Deciduous small tree
- Height
- 5–8 m
- Sunlight
- Full sun to part shade
- Soil
- Average, well-drained
- Water
- Moderate
- Hardiness
- 5–7
- Lifespan
- 20–50 years
Did you know
- Golden chain trees produce some of the most spectacular flower displays of any small tree — long pendulous chains of golden-yellow pea flowers up to 60 cm (2 ft) long.
- The famous Laburnum Arch at Bodnant Garden in Wales is one of the most photographed garden features in the world — a 55-meter golden tunnel that blooms every May.
- It's a member of the pea family and the flowers look exactly like enormous wisteria blooms, but in pure gold instead of purple.
- Every part of the plant is highly toxic — particularly the seeds, which contain the alkaloid cytisine that has caused many accidental poisonings of children.
- The wood is famously hard and resistant to rot, and was used historically to make bagpipes, longbows, and decorative inlays.
Color meanings
Yellow
Cascading wealth