Peabody wrote in
news:G4LGe.2811$MZ6.123@lakeread01:

Kentucky Coffee Tree

Here's my info dump from my notes. These are gleaned from personal
observations, Michael Dirr, and George Washington Univerisity's Woody
Plants classes:

Gymnocladus dioicus, Kentucky Coffeetree
Zones: 3b - 8 Fabaceae N.Y. - NB - TN ---central U.S.

Leaves: Alternate, bipinnately compound, huge - to 36" long and 24" wide,
with 3 - 7 pairs of pinnae (the primary rib or division attached to the
rachis - feather-like), the lower few reduced to simple leaflets.
Individual leaflets are elliptic, entire, 1-1/2 - 3" long acute or pointed
at apex, dark bluish-green, and pubescent beneath. Kentucky Coffeetrees
leaf out very late usually not until the 1st or 2nd week of May, usually no
fall color but occasionally yellow.

Habit: 60 - 75'+ high by 40 - 50' wide. Very coarse textured, picturesque
tree with stiffly ascending branches and a narrow obovate crown. The tree
has large, irregularly crooked branches with an open form and short, stubby
twigs, especially noticeable in winter. This is one of those trees you
either love or hate due to its gawky, coarse, but striking habit especially
in winter! There is variability in structure with no two exactly alike.
Bark: Rough, with hard thin scaly ridges curling outward along edges. Gray-
brown and very distinctive.

Flowers: Dioecious or poly-gamo-dioecious, greenish white, 4 - 5 petals,
the flowers ¾ - 1" long in May-June. Borne together in 8 - 12" long
pyramidal panicles on female trees, supposedly very fragrant - 'smelling
like a rose". Males have smaller (3 - 4" long) panicles. Not very showy or
remarkable.

Fruit: reddish brown - black leathery pods, 5 - 10" long, with a hard shell
ripening in October and persisting thru winter. Fruits heavily every 2nd
or 3rd year. Quite messy-looking and some would say UGLY.

Cultu Prefers deep, rich, moist soils in full sun; but is quite
adaptable to high pH, urban and polluted sites, and varied soils. Wood may
be brittle.

D&I: None serious

Uses: A choice tree for golf courses, parks, and large areas. This tree is
sometimes considered a 'dirty' tree due to the large, messy pods that
create litter problems as well as large leaflets and rachis that fall at
different times. Always draws attention and curiousity.

I especially like to use this tree when it can be backlit, or when views
through the foliage are backlit, as the interplay of light and shadow, as
well as the light through the leaf itself, is very nice.


--
David J. Bockman, Fairfax, VA (USDA Hardiness Zone 7)
email:
http://beyondgardening.com/Albums