REDBUD
(JUDAS TREE)

The redbud is a colorful ornamental tree that blooms early in the Spring. It is common along the Colonial Parkway where the lavender-colored flowers clustered along the branches give a dash of brightness to the still wintry woods.

The leaves of the redbud are heart-shaped and appear after the flowers drop. The fruit is a pod, up to three inches in length, that falls in the winter, freeing several seeds a fourth of an inch long.

Redbuds sometimes grow to a height of fifty feet but more often are in the form of a small shrub fifteen to twenty feet high. The foliage is eaten by deer, and several kinds of birds feast on the seeds.

The tree is often called a Judas tree because of its close relationship to the species thought to be the one from which Judas Iscariot hanged himself.

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