Wikimedia Commons
Fabaceae
Eastern Redbud
Cercis canadensis
New beginnings, springtime joy, Easter.
- Family
- Fabaceae
- Genus
- Cercis
- Native to
- Eastern North America
- Bloom season
- Early Spring
- Type
- Deciduous tree
- Height
- 6–9 m
- Sunlight
- Full sun to part shade
- Soil
- Average, well-drained
- Water
- Moderate
- Hardiness
- 4–9
- Lifespan
- 50–70 years
Did you know
- Redbud flowers grow directly out of the trunk and branches — a phenomenon called 'cauliflory' — creating a stunning effect of pink blossoms erupting from bare gray bark.
- The flowers are completely edible and have a sweet pea-like flavor; chefs use them to garnish salads and desserts in early spring.
- It's a member of the legume family, meaning it fixes nitrogen and produces flat brown seedpods later in the year.
- The eastern redbud is the state tree of Oklahoma and a beloved landscape tree across the eastern half of the United States.
- Redbuds are pollinated almost exclusively by long-tongued bumblebees and a specialist mining bee called the redbud bee (Habropoda laboriosa).
Color meanings
Pink
Spring's first blush