Silktree
Albizia julibrissin
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*This map shows the current US range, not the native range.
Silktree grows throughout the southeastern and western US. It is native to tropical Asia and was introduced to the US as an ornamental plant, but escaped cultivation along roadsides and edges of woods, thereby becoming an invasive species in many states. Silktree is tolerant of soil moisture conditions but grows best in full sun.
Fruit: A 10-15 cm long, dry, brown legume containing several seeds. They ripen in August.
Flowers: A fragrant, pink, and silky flower. Each flower is 2" wide and resembles a pompom. They bloom from late April to early July.
Uses: Silktrees have been widely used as ornamental tree, but have become less popular as their threat to native plants has become clearer. Their wood is relatively weak and therefore has few uses.
Ethnobotany: Physicians in Asia used to prescribe silk tree tea, made from both the flowers and the leaves. In the West, on the other hand, the seeds are reported as toxic.
Importance to wildlife: Flowers are attractive to pollinators. The tree can outcompete nearby plants.
A single leaf on a silktree. Silktrees are bipinnately compound, explaining the large number of leaflets on this leaf. Each leaf has 6-16 side branchlets, with each branchlet having 18-30 leaflet pairs. They experience no color change in the fall.
The venation on a silktree leaf. Midribs are located nearly all the way to the edge of a leaflet, rather than close to the middle as is common in most trees.
The leaf arrangement on a silktree. Leaves have a simple arrangement.
A twig of a silktree. Twigs have many light lenticels. When broken, they smell of green peas.
The bark of a silktree. Silktrees are fast growing but relatively short lived at about 30 years.
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