Desert Museum™ Palo Verde (Parkinsonia X Cercidium)

   

Desert Museum™ Palo Verde, Chihuahuan Desert Gardens, Centennial Museum, University of Texas at El Paso. Photograph by A.H. Harris.

• Common English Names: Desert Museum™ Palo Verde
• Common Spanish Names:
• Scientific Name: Cercidium microphyllum X Cercidium floridum X Parkinsonia aculeata (hybrid) (sir-SID-dee-um my-crow-FIE-lum, FLOR-ih-dum, park-in-SON-ee-uh, ah-ku-lee-AE-tuh)
• Family: Fabaceae (Bean Family)
• Geographic Range: Retama is a South American native widely naturalized in the Southwest and South. Littleleaf Palo Verde and Blue Palo Verde are Sonoran Desert species.
• Plant Form: Small tree ca. 20 x 20 ft.
• Remarks: This is a three-way hybrid between Retama (Parkinsonia aculeata), Littleleaf Palo Verde (Cercidium microphyllum), and Blue Palo Verde (Cercidium floridum). It grows rapidly to about 20' in 3 to 5 years. It is thornless and produces little litter. Blooming is heaviest between mid-March and the end of April, but it often blooms again in June and August. Requires some irrigation through the first few years.

Last Update: 19 Apr 2006