by Ferida Wolff

The ornamental Redbud tree is a delight to see. At every stage it draws you in to appreciate its color, flowers, and leaves. The flowers are now an attention-getting purply pink that last for weeks. The leaves, when they appear, start out as maroon, turn deep green, and eventually yellow. And you have to love the shape of the leaves — they look like hearts!

It is an understory tree, which means that it thrives under the canopy of taller trees, usually growing between twenty and thirty feet. Yet it is adaptable. It can grow out in the open and pretty much in any soil (even clay, hooray!) though it does prefer some drainage.

The Redbud is an early blossoming tree and stands out against the slower developing trees. The fruit hangs in pods like peas and is edible. The flowers can be used in salads. Native peoples used the bark to make a medicinal tea to treat fevers and congestion like whooping cough.

Quite a multi-purpose tree. It nurtures in a variety of ways. Did I mention that bees are attracted to its pollen and that hummingbirds like its nectar? Without a doubt, this is a tree that deserves to be valued. Whenever I look in my backyard and see the spring Redbud, I can feel my spirit expand. And all summer long its heart-shaped leaves will remind me to keep looking for the spirit in all life forms.

About the Redbud:

http://plants.usda.gov/factsheet/pdf/fs_ceca4.pdf

http://www.arborday.org/programs/nationaltree/redbud.cfm

Pictorial details:

http://www.duke.edu/~cwcook/trees/ceca.html

©2012 Ferida Wolff for SeniorWomen.com

Editor's Note: A protest of some dimension relating to the Redbud Woods on the campus of Cornell University prompted the  plaque enscribed with the following words to be placed on the former site of the Redbuds in 2006:

*Redbud Woods The land before you was once home to the extended family of Robert H. Treman, creator of parks and protector of green spaces throughout Tompkins County. The woodland that grew up here was inhabited for decades by diverse fauna and more than fifty plant species, including numerous redbud trees. Redbud Woods was razed on July 20, 2005 by the Cornell administration to build a parking lot. This plaque has been erected by Ithaca community members in memory of this cherished woodland.

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