State Tree Of Oklahoma
Redbud Is The Official State Tree Of Oklahoma. Oklahoma Adopted redbud (Cercis canadensis) as the official Oklahoma State Tree in 1937. Eastern redbud is a small, perennial tree in the bean family. As a member of the bean family, eastern redbud is also related to honey-locust, Kentucky coffeetree, black locust, and wisteria, as well as other types of redbuds. The bean family is also known as the legume, pea, or pulse family. This small, sparsely branched tree, also called redbud or Judas-tree, is said to be the species from which Judas Iscariot hanged himself after betraying Christ, but the name may derive from “Judea’s tree,” after the region in the Middle East where the tree is commonplace.
PHYSICAL DETAILS
National Tree Of Oklahoma Eastern redbud is a small tree or shrub, mature at 15 feet high, reaching 40 feet at most. It is a native, deciduous tree with a flat to rounded crown. Its broad, heart-shaped leaves are typically green but maybe dark reddish or highly glossy in some forms or cultivars. Its flowers are usually bright pink or sometimes deeper rose-colored or white, are small and numerous, are shaped like a pea flower, and emerge directly from the twigs, branches, and trunk of trees prior to the leaves in spring. The fruit is like a thin bean pod, turning brown in the fall.
Height: 25-50 ft (7.6-15.2 m)
Diameter: 10-30 ft (3.0-9.1 m)
Bark: 0.5 in (1.2 cm) thick, scaly with age
Fruit: flat, thin-walled legume 1.5-3.9 in (4-10 cm) long and 0.3-0.7 in (8-18 mm) broad, with several hard, shiny seeds
Leaves: 5-9 prominent, radiating veins, reddish-purple or light green, darken then turn yellow with age
LIFESPAN
This is a short-lived tree, normally living 50 to 80 years.
HABITAT
State Tree Of Oklahoma Eastern redbud occurs in the open or as an understory tree common along the edge of woods in a variety of habitats. It very commonly occurs with flowering dogwood and in the Ashe juniper habitat, which is critical to endangered golden-cheeked warblers.
REPRODUCTION
National Tree Of Oklahoma Eastern redbud reproduces by seeds dispersed by birds. On average, first reproduction occurs when a tree is about 15 feet (4.5 m) tall, although sometimes blooming begins earlier. Pods may be borne by five-year-old eastern redbud, with a maximum reproductive age of 75 years.
