Cercidium microphyllum
Common: Foothills palo verde
Family: Leguminosae
Origin: Native to Sonoran Desert
Temperature: Hardy to 15F
Light: Full sun
Soil: Most soils, well drained.
Water: Needs very little water.
Slow growing to 15 feet tall, 15 feet wide, with shrublike appearance. Can reach height of 20 to 25 feet. Found on slopes, one of the most common trees of Sonoran Desert. Bark is green. Leaves are of medium texture and yellowish green.
Flowers are sulfur yellow and appear in mid to late spring. Flowers appear on the end of branches. Tree may not flower every year, depending on rainfall.
Good for naturalistic landscapes. Will shed leaves during extensively dry and hot periods. Seedlings are sensitive to drought for first two or three months of their lives. With enough rainfall, seeds appear in long soft pods which ripen in July and stick to the branches.