51. Yellowwood

Fabaceae

Cladrastis kentukea

Specimen Size: 24.5ft tall, 9.9in in diameter.

Location: Planted along George Washington lane in front of Cunningham Hall. Original specimen on the southwest end of Anderson Hall removed summer of 2024.

Historical Background: Root bark used as dye by early settlers in the Appalachian mountains. There is only one species of yellowwood native to North America; the other species are native to Asia. Despite being a member of the Legume Family, this tree is not a nitrogen fixer, and does not form the root nodules to host rhizobium.

Non-Native

Native Range: Southeastern to Central Eastern United States

Identifying Features light: A member of the legume family, this tree demonstrates the characteristic compound leaves and pealike flowers. Growing to a height of about 50”, the Yellowwood exhibits a generally rounded crown and bright green deciduous foliage. Flowers are white and grow in panicles up to 16’ (40 centimeters). The tree also produces pods about 3.5’ (8cm long) for its seeds.

Identifying Features In Depth:

Form: Broad with low apical control producing a rounded spreading crown, up to about 50” (15m).
Leaves: Compound and roughly 12’ (30cm) long with 5-11 obovate leaflets growing alternately and widely spaced about 4’ (10 cm) long. Leaflets are a bright light green with arcuate venation.
Bark: Bark is sinuous smooth to slightly scaly, silvery-gray to brown.
Reproductive Bodies: Pealike white flowers hang down in strings 8-14’ long, give rise to pods like those of their relaties the pea with flat seeds inside.

The odd scattered distribution that is the native range of the Cladrastis kentukea, based on research compiled by Virginia Tech.

Below is the description found for this species on the original Brockman Memorial Tree Tour:

Historic Tree Tour Information: The Pea family of plants is rich in diversity, ranging from Lima beans to locust trees. Yellowwood is a rare even endangered species of the eastern U.S., named in pioneer days for its heartwood's striking deep yellow color. Echoing the wood, in October the leaves replace their dark green with glowing yellow. As the individual west of Anderson Hall exemplifies, Yellowwood trunks tend to fork low, a trait that bothers economic foresters but endears the tree to lovers of picturesque landscape specimens. Yellowwood is a shade tree of substantial foliage, that every few years excites us in June with wisteria-like chains of white, fragrant flowers, covering the crown in splendid fashion. The smooth elephant-hide bark is grey where algae and lichen has not coated it with a film of green or crusty silver.