LEAVES: Alternate, once and twice compound, 7″-8″ long, having even numbers of 1″ long leaflets with fine-toothed margins, petiole grooved above and somewhat hairy.
TWIGS: Moderately stout, shiny, smooth, reddish to greenish brown, commonly mottled or streaked, and often with long, branched, sharp thorns. Twigs have no end buds and very small side buds.
FRUIT: A leathery pod, 10″-18″ long, flat, often twisted with numerous very hard, dark brown, oval seeds. Pods contain a sweetish, gummy pulp.
BARK: Greenish brown with many long raised, horizontal lines of lenticels on younger trees, becoming brown to nearly black with long, narrow, scaly ridges separated by deep fissures and often covered with clusters of large, branched thorns.
GENERAL: Medium sized, commonly 40′-50′ but can reach 140′ high. Found naturally on rich, moist bottomlands in southwestern Pennsylvania, but widely planted as an ornamental throughout. A thornless variety with clear yellow fall color has been developed for the nursery trade. The strong, hard wood is used for fence posts and general construction, but it is not widely available. Many animals, including cattle, feed on the pods and seedlings.
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