Gymnocladus dioicus 'Espresso'
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Maackia |
Sophora japonica 'Regent'
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Locations in Hudson River Park:
Morton Street to Christopher Street (N1) Christopher Street to Charles Street (N2) sections |
Kingdom Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom Tracheobionta – Vascular plants Superdivision Spermatophyta – Seed plants Division Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants Class Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons Subclass Rosidae Order Fabales Family Fabaceae – Pea family Genus Gymnocladus Lam. – coffeetree |
Genus
Gymnocladus Lam. – coffeetree Species Gymnocladus dioicus (L.) K. Koch – Kentucky coffeetree |
American coffee bean, American coffee berry, Coffeebean, Coffeebean-tree, Coffeenut, Coffeetree
Chico du Canada, Chicot Dead tree, Stump tree Geweihbaum (German, Antler tree) American mahogany, Kentucky mahogany, Mahogany, Mahogany-bean Nettle-tree Nicker tree
Native to eastern and central US
Native Habitat: Floodplains; moist woods; lower slopes Life expectancy: 100 + years Caution: Leaves, seeds, and pulp are poisonous to humans and pets.
Salt spray tolerance moderate Soil salt tolerance poor Common names "dead tree" and "stump tree" refer to the fact that this tree loses its leaves early in autumn, has tiny winter buds, and leafs out late in spring, being leafless for about six months and therefore appearing to be dead.
The genus name refers to the same phenomenon. |
Native to China and Korea Native habitat: Lifespan: Kanji for the tree (槐) is composed of 木 ("tree") and 鬼 ("demon"). Legend has it that demons were drawn to the tree, that anyone living in a house made of wood from this tree would die mysteriously, and, in the wild, other species of tree rarely grow near it. |
Toxic Parts:
In fruit, pulp between the seeds, mistaken for the sweet, non-toxic pulp of the honey locust Toxin Delivery Mode: Ingestion Symptoms: Stomach pain, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, irregular pulse, coma Edibility:
EDIBLE PARTS: Seeds, roasted and ground, can be used as a substitute for coffee; does not have caffeine Toxic Principle:
Alkaloid cytisine Severity: CAUSES ONLY LOW TOXICITY IF EATEN |
Toxic Part: Seeds Toxin Delivery Mode: Ingestion Symptoms:No cases known. Possibly vomiting, diarrhea, excitement, delirium, and coma Toxic Principle: Alkaloids? Suspected due to close relationship to Mescal bean Severity: CAUSES ONLY LOW TOXICITY IF EATEN |
Rare throughout its range
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By Elbert L. Little, Jr., of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
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Tree / Bark
Tree
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Tree
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Foliage
Leaves
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Leaves
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Flowers
Panicles
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Fruit / Seeds
A 2 to 4 hour treatment of concentrated sulfuric acid is ideal for breaking down the seed coat. Once treated the seeds imbibe water quickly and will germinate uniformly when sown.
Before planting you must scarify the tough seed coat (in nature this is usually done by passing through an animal). I have found two good methods for doing this. The first is to use a hacksaw on the seed, scoring it about 1/16" - 1/8" deep, just enough to see a color change in the seed coat. I tried this method for the first time this year, and it seems to work well. The other method is just to crack the seeds in a vise; place the seed in the vise with the widest side parallel to the floor, then tighten the vise slowly until the seed pops. Filing the seedcoat by hand with a small file, and then soaking the seeds in water for 24 hours will ensure rapid germination |
Many pods persist on the tree throughout the winter, resisting even the fiercest winds and the most violent rain storms. Those pods that are brought down remain beneath the tree until the leathery case rots and the enclosed seeds become moldy. In the wild the pods are refused by deer and rabbits, no livestock devour them, and urban squirrels and rats ignore them even though they contain a sweet pulp. The seeds are too large for birds and the seed cases are so extremely hard that germination is impossible.
Why would nature put such effort into producing plant parts that go to waste year after year. Perhaps there once were creatures that possessed the means to pluck the pods from treetops, molars to grind up the pods and scarify the seed coats without crushing the seeds themselves, and a digestive system capable of withstanding the toxins produced in the pods, pulp, and seeds. |