Cercis canadensis (Eastern Redbud)

Eastern Redbud (Cercis canadensis)

Height, Spread: 20-30 ft, 20-35 ft

Water/Soil: Moist-occasionally dry, well-drained, most soil types

Light: Full sun-part shade

Bloom: Spring, pink flowers in a cluster

Native Range: Eastern North America

Qualities: Attractive to pollinators, Wildlife resource

Notes: Deciduous ornamental tree commonly found in mesic mixed forests in the Mountains and the Piedmont of NC. Attractive to pollinators, it is a larval host plant for 12 species of Lepidoptera (moths & butterflies), including Henry's Elfin butterfly (Callophrys henrici). It also supports specialized native bee, Habropoda laboriosa. Birds and small mammals eat the seeds. It is best used in a woodland area as an understory tree or a pollinator garden as a statement piece.