From: Subject: FOR-8 KENTUCKY COFFEETREE: THE STATE TREE OF KENTUCKY Date: Thu, 3 Jun 2010 13:26:32 -0400 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Location: http://www.ca.uky.edu/agc/pubs/for/for8/for8.htm X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2900.5931 FOR-8 KENTUCKY COFFEETREE: THE STATE TREE OF = KENTUCKY FOR-8 
KENTUCKY COFFEETREE:
THE STATE TREE = OF=20 KENTUCKY
ISSUED: 7-75
REVISED: 6-93
by Deborah B. Hill and = William=20 M. Fountain*=20

Years ago someone digging = through old law=20 books discovered that Kentucky's legislature had never officially = established a=20 state tree. People considered the tulip poplar to be Kentucky's = "official" state=20 tree as it is in the neighboring states of Tennessee and Illinois. = Politics and=20 state pride being what they are, our state government sought to = differentiate=20 itself from its two neighbors. On February 16, 1976, the Kentucky = coffeetree=20 (Gymnocladus dioica (L.) K. Koch) became the official state tree = of=20 Kentucky when Governor Julian Carroll signed a bill ending years of = controversy=20 on the subject. The Kentucky legislature confirmed it as the official = state tree=20 on March 8th, 1976.
The late = Joe=20 Creason, a Louisville Courier Journal columnist, is credited with = initiating and supporting the idea of making this the state tree. The = Kentucky=20 coffeetree is the only state tree that carries the name of its host = state as=20 part of its common name.=20

Historical Background
The = earliest=20 known use of the name "coffeetree" is found in one of George = Washington's=20 diaries from the late 1700s. He was given some seed of this species for = planting=20 at Mount Vernon. The common name coffeetree came about because Native = Americans=20 and early settlers in Kentucky brewed a hot beverage from its roasted = seeds.=20
The name Kentucky coffeetree = was=20 promoted by early land developers who wanted to get settlers out to the = "far=20 west" (which included Kentucky at that time). Coffee, a popular = beverage, was=20 expensive and hard to find away from coastal ports. Land developers = advertised=20 Kentucky as a place where a tree grew with beans that could be roasted = and=20 brewed to make a fine coffee substitute. Although drinkable, the = beverage was no=20 substitute for coffee, and the early settlers quickly dropped it as soon = as the=20 real thing became available.
The=20 literature cites two unusual common names for this species: "nicker = tree" and=20 "chicot." Other common names include "mahogany" in New York, Maryland = and=20 Kentucky, and "butternut" in Tennessee. There are only two other species = in the=20 genus Gymnocladus, both of which are native to eastern Asia.=20

General Characteristics
The natural=20 range of the Kentucky coffeetree looks like a broad oval extending from = Lake=20 Erie to Oklahoma; it includes Kentucky on the southeastern side and = Minnesota on=20 the northwest. Despite this broad distribution, the Kentucky coffeetree = is one=20 of the most uncommon trees in the eastern deciduous forest. Some people = believe=20 the coffeetree was introduced into Kentucky by Native Americans. When = the=20 European settlers first came into the area, the coffeetree was found = growing in=20 river bottoms and open woodlands, mostly in limestone areas such as the = inner=20 Bluegrass. Naturally occurring coffeetrees can be found on deep, rich,=20 bottomland alluvial soils, but when planted as an ornamental, = coffeetrees can=20 thrive over a wide range of soils. The coffeetree often grows in = association=20 with black walnut, honeylocust, yellow-poplar, hackberry, ashes and = several of=20 the hickories.
The = coffeetree belongs in=20 Leguminosae, the pea family. Many members of this family have the = capability of fixing atmospheric nitrogen which enriches the soil in = which they=20 grow. However, like many other woody members of this family, the = coffeetree does=20 not have a nitrogen-fixing bacterium (Rhizobium sp.) on its root = system.=20 It is also free of serious insect or disease problems.
Kentucky coffeetree is a medium to large tree, = usually=20 reaching a height of 75 to 100 feet and a diameter of 2 =BD feet. = Rarely,=20 specimens may be found 120 feet high and 5 =BD feet in diameter. The = national=20 champion Kentucky coffeetree is in West Liberty, Kentucky. It has a = diameter of=20 5 =BD feet, a height of 78 feet and a crown spread of 84 feet. =
The genus name, Gymnocladus, = means "naked=20 branch" in Greek, which refers to the network of coarse branches that = typically=20 can be seen without foliage or smaller twigs for about six months of = each year.=20 Without its foliage, the tree takes on a coarse appearance in winter. = Flaky,=20 grayish-brown to dark-brown bark forms on branches as small as two = inches in=20 diameter. These "flakes" have interesting lines which resemble the lines = on a=20 contour map. These characteristics, along with its persistent seed pods, = make=20 the species easy to identify even when it is dormant.=20

Species Characteristics
The Kentucky=20 coffeetree is easily recognized. Its trunk is short and divides into two = to four=20 secondary branches that are almost parallel to each other. The dark-gray = to=20 dark-brown bark is of medium thickness and has rough projecting ridges. = The=20 reddish inner bark is often visible at the bottom of the "valleys" = (fissures) in=20 the bark. The twigs are stout, greenish-brown and are often coated with = a=20 whitish, crusty film and, occasionally, fine hairs. Inside the twigs is = a center=20 section of pinkish- to reddish-brown pith. Older twigs are marked with = large,=20 orange-colored horizontal openings called lenticels.
The leaves are alternate, bipinnately (twice) = compound (having=20 many leaflets on a single leaf) and can reach lengths up to 36 inches = and widths=20 up to 24 inches, making it one of the largest leaves found on a native = North=20 American woody plant. The subleaflets are 2 =BD inches long by 1 inch = wide and=20 oval with pointed tips and unequal bases. They have entire margins (no = "teeth")=20 and are dark green above and pale green below.
The species is dioecious, which means that the tree = will be=20 either male or female. The male and female flowers are greenish-white = and occur=20 on separate trees. Coffeetree flowers, which open in late May to early = June=20 after the leaves emerge, smell like roses.
Fruit forms only on female trees, but a male must be = nearby if=20 fruit is to mature and make viable seeds. The broad, flat, thick pods = occur on=20 stout stalks which become obvious in late summer and persist on the tree = until=20 the following spring. These pods are 5 to 10 inches long and 1 =BD to 2 = inches=20 broad, giving them the appearance of a large butter bean pod. =
Each seed is the size of a quarter and = is surrounded=20 by a sweet, sticky pulp. The seeds, usually six to nine in a pod, are = dark brown=20 and flat. The seeds contain a toxic alkaloid called cytisine which is = thought to=20 be detoxified by roasting. Cattle have been reported to die after = drinking from=20 pools of water where coffeetree seeds have been soaking. It is thought = that the=20 pioneers used the sticky pulp around the seed as both medicine and soap. =

Culture of the Coffeetree
One can=20 gather ripe pods from trees in late fall by carefully shaking the = branches. It=20 is much faster and easier to collect ripe pods from the ground the = following=20 April. This avoids the possibility of damaging branches in the process = of=20 shaking or striking them. Small amounts of seed can be extracted from = the pods=20 by hand, but nurseries often use a special macerator (a piece of = equipment which=20 softens the seeds by soaking them) and thresher for seed extraction. = After=20 threshing, the seeds are cleaned in water and the ones that float are = discarded.=20
One hundred pounds of pods = usually yield=20 about 30 pounds of seed. After extraction and cleaning, the seeds should = be=20 placed in cold, dry storage where they can be kept indefinitely. There = are=20 approximately 230 seeds per pound, and 90 to 95% of the seeds are able = to=20 germinate.
Natural = germination of=20 coffeetree seed is often delayed for two or more years because the thick = seedcoats do not break down easily in water. Less than 5% of the seeds = usually=20 germinate without special treatment. The germination time can be = shortened by=20 the immersion of seed in water heated nearly to the boiling point. = Another=20 technique involves soaking the seed in concentrated sulfuric acid for = two to=20 four hours and then washing them thoroughly before planting.
After either of these treatments, the = seed should be=20 soaked in water until swollen. Individual seeds can also be scraped with = a file=20 or emery wheel. Seed treated by these methods can then be sown and = covered with=20 one to two inches of soil. Sow seed in the spring at the rate of 12 to = 20 seeds=20 per linear foot in rows spaced 10 to 12 inches apart. One-year old = seedlings can=20 be transplanted to the field, or transplanting can be delayed if larger = stock is=20 desired. Transplanting in the early spring before leaf growth begins is = usually=20 best in Kentucky.=20

Uses of the Coffeetree
The Kentucky=20 coffeetree reaches merchantable timber size throughout most of its range = and has=20 a tough, durable, often handsomely-figured wood with many superior = properties.=20 The beauty of its wood has caused it to be compared to the tropical wood = ebony.=20 Because of its rarity in our forests, the logs are often sold in mixture = with=20 other species and lose their identity. It has been used locally for = fence posts,=20 railroad ties, bridge timbers and occasionally for interior trim and = furniture.=20 Its hardness and turnability make it desirable for woodcrafters. =
Because of its attractive winter = silhouette, the=20 Kentucky coffeetree is widely planted as an ornamental. Its large leaves = provide=20 almost a tropical setting. It grows rapidly under cultivation and is = highly=20 resistant to insects and disease; even Japanese beetles seldom feed on = it. It is=20 highly resistant to storm damage.
Male=20 trees are recommended for planting since they do not produce pods that = litter=20 lawns and streets. However, it is the leaves of both types of trees that = account=20 for much of the litter that falls during the late fall and early winter. = No=20 cultivars have been described for the Kentucky coffeetree and, as long = as=20 propagation is by seed, approximately half of every seed lot will be = female.=20
If male trees are more = desirable in the=20 landscape, they can be propagated vegetatively by root cuttings or = grafting.=20 Since the coffeetree is a large tree, care must be taken at the time of = planting=20 to ensure that it will remain clear of power lines, buildings and other = trees.=20

This species tolerates drought, alkaline soils, pollution, deicing = salt, heat=20 and reflected light, making it a truly tough and resilient, and = therefore highly=20 desirable, landscape and forest tree.=20

* This publication is based on an earlier version of FOR-8 published = in 1975=20 by Stanley B.Carpenter.=20

Flaky bark = and=20 coarse branches are typical of the Kentucky coffeetree.=20

The = fissured=20 bark is dark brown on the surface and reddish in the "valleys."=20

The broad, flat, thick pods contain = several=20 quarter-sized seeds in a sticky, sweet pulp.=20

The greenish-white male and female = flowers=20 occur on separate trees and smell like roses when they emerge in late = May-early=20 June.