Judas tree
Cercis siliquastrum
MediumSecondary
Production
An early-spring showstopper: pink edible blossom bursts straight from the bark, feeding pollinators when little else flowers. A legume, but it doesn't fix nitrogen and grows slowly.
Tolerances & traits
- Strata
- Medium
- Lifecycle
- Secondary
- Soil preference
- Loam, Rocky
- Soil pH range
- 6 – 8
- Min. temperature
- -15°C
- Min. rainfall
- 450 mm/year
- Wind tolerance
- Medium
- Frost tolerance
- Medium
- Growth rate
- Slow
- Irrigation needed
- Low
How to manage it
Drought-hardy small tree with edible flowers and strong early pollinator value; formative prune when young to shape a single leader.
Watch out for
Legume family but NON-nodulating - it does NOT fix nitrogen (like carob), so do not rely on it to feed neighbours. Slow to establish and short-lived.
Design your line to see how your land fits Judas tree.
Start designing your line →Related species