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Cercis occidentalis
Also called California redbud
Western redbud is a deciduous shrub to small tree native to dry foothills and stream banks of Oregon and northern California, known for pink to magenta pea-like flowers before its leaves appear in spring. It thrives with full sun, good drainage and little summer water once established.
Cercis occidentalis, the western redbud or California redbud, is a small tree or shrub in the legume family, Fabaceae. It is found primarily in Oregon and Northern California, with other redbuds of Utah and Arizona typically being the related species Cercis orbiculata.
It is easily recognized when it is in bloom from March to May, when it is covered with small pink to purple flowers.
Its native habitats include foothill woodlands and chaparrals; they grow near stream banks in dry foothills and lower canyon slopes below 1,100 metres (3,600 ft). It grows frequently in crevices and pockets where seeds are well covered with mineral soil.
Indigenous Californians use the twigs of the western redbud to weave baskets, and even prune the shrub to encourage growth of new twigs.
Eastern redbud · Chinese Redbud · Arizona Redbud · Judas-tree
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Cercis occidentalis by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
