Coffee-Tree

Order: Fabales

Family: Fabaceae

Genus: Gymnocladus

Species: G. dioicus

Identifying Characteristics:

- 60-70 feet tall

- bark: is ash-gray and scaly, flaking

- flowers: are dioecious

- fruit: is a hard-shelled bean in heavy, woody, thick-walled pods filled with sweet, thick, gooey pulp. The shape of the pods varies somewhat: pod length ranges from about 12.7 to 25.4 cm; unfertilized female trees may bear miniature seedless pods. The beans contain the toxin cytisine

-Leaves: Alternate, bi-pinnately compound, ten to fourteen pinnate. Leaflets ovate, two to two and one-half inches long, wedge-shaped or irregularly rounded at base, with wavy margin. When full grown are dark yellow green above, pale green beneath.

Special Adaptations:

- the coffee tree usually occurs as widely dispersed individuals or small colonial groups with interconnected root systems. It is found in floodplains and river valleys but is also sometimes seen on rocky hillsides and limestone woods.

- Toxic to animals