[Illustration: TEXAS REDBUD]
Trees, shrubs, or rarely herbs; leaves usually once or twice pinnate;
flowers mostly showy; sepals 5; petals 5; stamens mostly 10; ovary
1-celled; fruit a pod.
Texas Redbud (_Cercis reniformis_) is one of the handsomest shrubs of
the limestone hill region of Texas and New Mexico. The pea-shaped
flowers appear on last year’s wood in February or March, often remaining
lovely for a month before the leaves appear. The leaves are a glossy
green above, rounded and sometimes deeply notched or kidney-shaped
(reniform), and usually 3-4 in. broad. The clusters of numerous red
seed-pods are very conspicuous in the summer and autumn. The flat pods
have a narrow wing on one side and are pointed at both ends, 2½-3 in.
long and over ½ in. broad.
The Canadian or eastern redbud is found in the northern and eastern part
of the state. It has smaller flowers and very pointed leaves. The
western redbud grows in the mountainous region of the state and has
similar leaves but smaller flowers.
The Asiatic redbud is called Judas-tree because Judas is supposed to
have hanged himself from one of the trees. Redbud flowers, served either
fried or pickled for salads, are sometimes eaten by people. It is an
excellent shrub or small tree for highway and garden planting.
[Illustration: TWO-LEAVED SENNA]
Two-Leaved Senna (_Cassia roemeriana_) gets its common name from the two
spreading leaflets into which the leaf is divided. They are 1-2 in. long
and have a slender stalk about the same length. The stems are commonly
about 8-12 in. high, growing from a woody perennial root. The
sparsely-flowered clusters of yellow flowers appear from spring until
fall. The seed-pods are about an inch long and half an inch wide. This
senna is very abundant from Central Texas into Mexico and New Mexico. It
bears the name of Roemer, a geologist sent from Germany to study the
geology of the grant made to the German colonists at New Braunfels. He
was in Texas from 1845 to 1847, visited and botanized with Lindheimer at
New Braunfels, and carried many new Texas plants back to Germany.
The senna group is very large and mainly tropical in distribution, many
species being noted for medicinal properties. The coffee senna (_Cassia
occidentalis_) and the American senna (_Cassia marilandica_) are common
weeds in the eastern part of the state. The velvet-leaved or
Lindheimer’s senna grows in the western part of the state.
[Illustration: PARTRIDGE PEA]
Partridge Pea. Prairie Senna (_Chamaecrista fasciculata_) is also called
large-flowered sensitive pea, dwarf cassia, and magoty-boy-bean. It
blooms in the summer months and is very abundant in sandy soil in
Central and Eastern Texas, ranging to Mexico and the northern part of
the United States. The oblong leaves have 8-14 pairs of linear leaflets
and a conspicuous orange or brown gland near the base. The flowers have
five yellow petals, somewhat unequal and irregular in shape. Several
buds grow on a short stalk between the leaves, but usually only one
flower on the stalk opens at a time. It is an erect annual plant growing
about 2½ feet high and often widely branched above. The pods are
flattened, about ¼ in. wide and 2 in. long.
Several shrubs of the senna family are popular in Texas gardens, among
them the bird-of-paradise (_Poinciana gilliesii_). It is a South
American plant with showy yellow flowers which have 10 long brilliant
red stamens protruding 3-5 inches from the flower.
[Illustration: RETAMA. HORSE BEAN]
Retama. Horse Bean (_Parkinsonia aculeata_) is also known as
Jerusalem-thorn, shower-of-gold, and palo verde, the latter meaning
“green timber” from the green trunk and branches. It forms a spiny shrub
or small tree with long, graceful, somewhat drooping branches, bearing
bundles of leaves and sprays of yellow flowers. The long divided leaves
are somewhat unusual. The leaf-stalks are green, broad, and flattened,
performing the functions of the small leaflets which often drop off
quite early. The 5 yellow petals are almost equal, but one bears a honey
gland at its base and soon becomes red, remaining on the stalk longer
than the others. The pods are 3-5 in. long, very narrow and constricted
between the seeds. It ranges from Central Texas to Mexico and tropical
America, bearing a profusion of blooms through the warm months after
rains.
Besides being a very ornamental shrub of value in landscaping, the plant
has various other uses. The seeds are edible and have long been used as
food by Indians, Mexicans, and many animals. Mrs. Quillin, author of
_Texas Wild Flowers_, reports the use in the treatment of diabetes of a
tea the Mexicans make from the branches and leaves.