Robinia: a description of a tree
Robinia is a deciduous tree that closely resembles acacia. It is also called pseudo-acacia or pseudo-acacia. During the flowering period, the bush is decorated with large clusters of flowers.
The shrub grows over 4 m in height. Some varieties reach 20−35 m. The crown is spreading, it consists of several tiers. The tree takes up a lot of space in the garden. The trunk is thick, 50-100 cm in diameter, shoots grow at the very base. The leaves are green, with a silvery tinge, rather long, up to 25 cm in length. In autumn, the foliage takes on a golden yellow hue.
Robinia is a distant relative of the acacia
The shrub has a developed root system, so it can withstand strong gusts of wind.
The robinia tree blooms in June. During this period, it looks great:
- The inflorescences are racemose, up to 20 cm in diameter. They are evenly distributed throughout the bush.
- The flowers are small, pink, white or purple. They resemble bells and consist of 5 teeth.
- The flowers have a pleasant aroma. Nectar is released from them, so many bees fly around the tree during flowering.
Fruits ripen in September. They are gray or brown flattened beans 5-12 cm in length.
The middle lane and southern regions are suitable for growing false acacia. In the northern regions freezing of bushes is possible. With age, the frost resistance of pseudoacacia increases.
Varieties of robinia tree
In total, there are up to 10 species of this shrub. The most popular ones are:
- Common pseudoacacia. Deciduous shrub prefers calcareous soils. White flowers appear in June, bloom up to 20 days.
- Pseudoacacia sticky. Trees with a spreading crown of a spherical shape. They grow in height up to 8-12 m. The base of the petioles, inflorescences and fruits are covered with sticky hairs. The flowers are pink, odorless.
- Pseudoacacia bristly haired. Low-growing shrub, up to 3 m in height. It can be grown only in the southern regions, low frost resistance. Stems, leaves and petioles are covered with red hairs. The flowers are light pink. This type of pseudoacacia can re-bloom in September.
Any kind can be propagated by seed or root processes.
Robinia is used in landscape design, but it should be planted at a distance of 2-3 m from other ornamental shrubs, since it loves space. The raw materials of this tree are used in medicine, food industry and perfumery.