# Yellowwood, Kentucky yellow-wood, Gopherwood, Virgilia?



## Kofu (Jan 26, 2011)

Yellowwood was chosen as the 2015 'Urban Tree of the Year' by the Society of Municipal Arborists, and a local tree guy has suggested it could be a bee-friendly tree. Apparently it's not very common, even where it grows wild, but it actually does pretty well along city streets.

We might be able to encourage the city to plant more of them, but I wonder if anyone can recommend it as a good forage source?

Wildflower.org has useful information for native species, including trees and shrubs. Here's their listing for Yellowwood (_Cladrastis kentukea,_ aka _C. lutea_ & _Sophora kentukea_).


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## clyderoad (Jun 10, 2012)

from that link you posted: " Showy, pendent, foot-long spikes of cream-colored flowers appear in quantity only two or three times a decade."
doesn't sound like a good reliable forage source to me.
also this:
"rarely reaches 50 ft. in height. It is as wide as tall"
is there enough space for such a wide tree along city streets?

seems like an attractive tree though.


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## Tenbears (May 15, 2012)

The Bee Bee tree (Tetradium daniellii) would be a far better choice IMHO


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## Kofu (Jan 26, 2011)

clyderoad said:


> "Showy, pendent, foot-long spikes of cream-colored flowers appear in quantity only two or three times a decade."
> doesn't sound like a good reliable forage source to me.


That's from one source, though more reliable than some, and I'm wondering if anyone here has direct experience with Yellowwood.



Tenbears said:


> The Bee Bee tree (Tetradium daniellii) would be a far better choice IMHO


Yes, and privately we can plant that tree in our yards and encourage others to do the same. But the Bee-bee Tree is on the invasive species "Watch List" in Pennsylvania, and I'm not sure we can get the city to plant it on the streets.

From the pdf linked in the 'Trees' tab on that page:

*Bee-Bee Tree, Tetradium daniellii Benn.*

*Range: *This species has a very limited distribution in Pennsylvania and Ohio. It has shown to be invasive on the Penn State Mont Alto campus, into the neighboring Michaux State Forest, and has naturalized at Morris Arboretum and disturbed forest fragments in southeastern Pennsylvania.

*Biology and Spread: *This plant spreads by the numerous seeds. Birds will eat the fruits and disperse seeds to new locations.

*Ecological Threat: *Some suggest that this tree is weak wooded, so it may cause harm to structures and people during and after storms. Little is known about its impact on the environment, but it is considered a “watch list species” because it shows invasive tendencies in certain situations.​
I know people are really getting to like the Bee-bee tree, but we do need to keep an eye on it. A beekeeper in our area grows them for distribution. It's dioecious. He checks each tree's gender and distributes only the male trees. As long as there are no female trees nearby, no harm done...


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