Plantae > Tracheophyta > Magnoliopsida > Fabales > Fabaceae > Gymnocladus > Gymnocladus dioicus

Gymnocladus dioicus (Kentucky Coffee Tree)

Synonyms: Guilandina dioica (homotypic); Guilandina inermis; Gymnocadus dioicus; Gymnocladus canadensis; Hyperanthera dioica (homotypic)
Language: Russian

Wikipedia Abstract

The Kentucky coffeetree, Gymnocladus dioicus, is a tree in the subfamily Caesalpinioideae of the pea family Fabaceae, native to the Midwest and Upper South of North America. The seed may be roasted and used as a substitute for coffee beans; however, unroasted pods and seeds are toxic. The wood from the tree is used by cabinetmakers and carpenters. From 1976 to 1994 the Kentucky coffeetree was the state tree of Kentucky, after which the tulip poplar was returned to that designation.
View Wikipedia Record: Gymnocladus dioicus

Endangered Species

Status: Vulnerable
View IUCN Record: Gymnocladus dioicus

Attributes

Air Quality Improvement [1]  None
Allergen Potential [1]  High
Carbon Capture [1]  Medium-High
Screening - Summer [2]  Moderate
Screening - Winter [2]  Porous
Shade Percentage [1]  86 %
Temperature Reduction [1]  Medium
Wind Reduction [1]  Medium
Bloom Period [2]  Early Summer
Drought Tolerance [2]  Medium
Edible [3]  May be edible. See the Plants For A Future link below for details.
Fire Tolerance [2]  Low
Flower Type [3]  Dioecious
Fruit/Seed Abundance [2]  Medium
Fruit/Seed Begin [2]  Fall
Fruit/Seed End [2]  Spring
Growth Period [2]  Spring, Summer
Growth Rate [2]  Slow
Hazards [3]  The ripe seed contains hydrocyanic acid. This toxin can be destroyed by thoroughly heating the seed for at least 3 hours at 150
Janka Hardness [4]  1390 lbf (630 kgf) Medium
Leaf Type [3]  Deciduous
Lifespan [2]  Perennial
Propagation [2]  Bare Root, Container, Cutting, Seed
Root Depth [2]  36 inches (91 cm)
Seed Spread Rate [2]  Slow
Seed Vigor [2]  Medium
Seeds Per [2]  230 / lb (507 / kg)
Shape/Orientation [2]  Rounded
Specific Gravity [5]  0.6
Structure [3]  Tree
Usage [3]  The fruit is high in saponins and is used as a soap; The leaves are used as a fly poison; Trees are planted on the spoil tips of mines to stabilize and reclaim the soil; Wood - coarse-grained, heavy though not hard, strong, very durable in contact with the soil, finishes to a fine lustre. A handsome wood, it weighs 43lb per cubic foot and is used for cabinet work, furniture, construction, fencing etc;
Vegetative Spread Rate [2]  Slow
Flower Color [2]  White
Foliage Color [2]  Green
Fruit Color [2]  Green
Flower Conspicuous [2]  Yes
Fruit Conspicuous [2]  Yes
Height [3]  66 feet (20 m)
Width [3]  49 feet (15 m)
Hardiness Zone Minimum [1]  USDA Zone: 4 Low Temperature: -30 F° (-34.4 C°) → -20 F° (-28.9 C°)
Hardiness Zone Maximum [1]  USDA Zone: 8 Low Temperature: 10 F° (-12.2 C°) → 20 F° (-6.7 C°)
Light Preference [2]  Full Sun
Soil Acidity [2]  Neutral
Soil Fertility [2]  Infertile
Water Use [1]  Moderate to Low
View Plants For A Future Record : Gymnocladus dioicus

Protected Areas

Predators

Neotoma floridana (eastern woodrat)[6]
Orgyia leucostigma (White-marked Tussock Moth)[7]
Sciurus niger (eastern fox squirrel)[8]

Providers

Range Map

External References

USDA Plant Profile

Citations

Attributes / relations provided by
♦ 1i-Tree Species v. 4.0, developed by the USDA Forest Service's Northern Research Station and SUNY-ESF using the Horticopia, Inc. plant database.
♦ 2USDA Plants Database, U. S. Department of Agriculture
♦ 3Plants For A Future licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
♦ 4Wood Janka Hardness Scale/Chart J W Morlan's Unique Wood Gifts
♦ 5Forest Inventory and Analysis DB version 5.1, May 4, 2013, U.S. Forest Service
♦ 6Neotoma floridana, Robert W. Wiley, Mammalian Species No. 139, pp. 1-7 (1980)
♦ 7Jorrit H. Poelen, James D. Simons and Chris J. Mungall. (2014). Global Biotic Interactions: An open infrastructure to share and analyze species-interaction datasets. Ecological Informatics.
♦ 8Sciurus niger, John L. Koprowski, MAMMALIAN SPECIES No. 479, pp. 1-9 (1994)
♦ 9Robertson, C. Flowers and insects lists of visitors of four hundred and fifty three flowers. 1929. The Science Press Printing Company Lancaster, PA.
Abstract provided by DBpedia licensed under a Creative Commons License
Species taxanomy provided by GBIF Secretariat (2022). GBIF Backbone Taxonomy. Checklist dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/39omei accessed via GBIF.org on 2023-06-13; License: CC BY 4.0