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Parkinsonia aculeata L.  

No occurrences found

Family: Fabaceae
Jerusalem thorn
Parkinsonia aculeata image
Max Licher
  • Field Guide
  • Resources
Wiggins 1964, Benson and Darrow 1981, Kearney and Peebles 1969
Common Name: Jerusalem thorn Duration: Perennial Nativity: Native Lifeform: Tree Wetland Status: FAC General: Trees with well-developed trunk smooth, green bark on upper branches and brown, rough bark on trunk and main limbs, to 12 m tall. Young twigs have paired nodal, spines with small white hairs, soon becoming glabrous. Leaves: Leaves obscurely twice-pinnate, with reduced primary rachis, 1-3 flattened pinnae, up to 30 cm long, with 10-40 pairs of ephemeral leaflets 2-8 mm long. Flowers: On racemes 10-16 cm, relatively few-flowered; showy, 27-35 mm wide, sepals and petals yellow, banner petal at first with basal red-orange spots or flecks, anthers pale orange to somewhat rose colored. Fruits: Pods few seeded, more or less indehiscent or tardily semidehiscent. Ecology: Found along arroyos, sandy plains, or other low-lying areas where water accumulates in the low desert from 3,000-4,500 ft (914-1372 m); flowers March-May, occasionally post-monsoon. Distribution: Most states in southern US, from CA, NV, AZ and UT, east to FL; south to s MEX, and in S. Amer.; Europe; Africa and Australia. Notes: Distinguished by being a tree with photosynthetic, green bark and showy yellow flowers much like other Parkinsonia, but highly distinct by the very-long leaves (to 30 cm) with flattened, >10 cm long rachis of pinna, alternate leaflets and the brown bark on the trunk and main branches. Ethnobotany: Many tribes to seeds winnowed, parched, dried, cooked and stored them for food. Etymology: Parkinsonia is named after John Parkinson (1567-1650), while aculeata means prickly. Synonyms: None Editor: SBuckley 2010, FSCoburn 2015
Parkinsonia aculeata
Open Interactive Map
Parkinsonia aculeata image
Liz Makings
Parkinsonia aculeata image
Max Licher
Parkinsonia aculeata image
Max Licher
Parkinsonia aculeata image
Liz Makings
Parkinsonia aculeata image
Max Licher
Parkinsonia aculeata image
L.R. Landrum
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