Kentucky Coffeetree

Gymncladus dioicus

Fabaceae (Legume Family)

▲ mature tree

▲ leaves

▲ fruit

▲ bark (furrowed, with platey ridges with age)

Location on campus:  along drive from National Avenue into Lot 24, at southeast corner of Glass Hall

Gymnocladus dioicus: Kentucky Coffeetree

· leaves alternate, deciduous, bipinnately compound; leaflets oval with entire margins and pointed tip; leaflets dark blue-green; pubescent underneath when young

· stems very thick, greenish when young, becoming waxy or velvety gray-brown; pith salmon pink

· bark is dark-brown and deeply furrowed with scaly ridges

· grows 60-75' tall in tall oval crown

· is dioecious; flowers fragrant but not showy; female tree has short fat pods with large, hard, shiny beans; beans once roasted as coffee substitute by early settlers (hence the name)

· prefers full sun, moist, well-drained, fertile soil, but fairly soil adaptable

· slow to fast growth rate, depending on soil fertility and moisture

· native to Missouri