The redbuds are in flower, beautiful trees with lavender-purple flowers that contrast so nicely with the newly emerging leaves of surrounding trees. This native appears at the edge of wooded areas and seems to do well in partial sun or full sun. Considered an understory tree, the average height for Cercis canadensis is 15 to 20 feet.

A member of the leguminosae family, or pea family, the botanical origins for the genus name Cercis comes from ancient Greek kerkis, meaning a shuttle; the name given by Theophrastus to the European species (C. siliquastrum), from the resemblance of the seed pod to the weavers implement. Cercis siliquastrum was supposedly the tree that Judas Iscariot hanged himself on, turning white flowers to blood-red and then burned pink with shame.

There are 8 species of Cercis with 2 native to the North American Continent. Our local native is Cercis canadensis, also known as the eastern redbud. Found growing from New Jersey south to Northern Mexico and west to Missouri and Texas. Flowers appear up and down the branches as well as directly off of the main trunk. The magenta buds appear on dark, blackish bark and contrast well with each other, eventually aging to pink. Numerous variations occur in Cercis canadensis and Virginia and West Virginia are the hot bed for new cultivars, or those with differently colored flowers found growing in the wild. Two such selections are redbuds that go by the name of 'Appalachian Red' and 'Pauline Lily'. To see these in flower, one instantly recognizes their uniqueness.

The flowers on Cercis 'Appalachian Red' are hot pink, not the standard magenta or pink. On Cercis 'Pauline Lily' they are salmon as they first open and age to pink. Two other selections are grown for their foliage and makes them very popular with the benefit of ornament extended through several seasons. The most popular and readily found is Cercis canadensis 'Forest Pansy', the foliage is a dark ruby color. More difficult to find is Cercis 'Silver Cloud' which exhibits stunning variegated leaves, they look like they have been splattered with white paint. The flowers are a pale pink but the leaves are the primary reason to grow this selection. Only old plants will readily flower, young trees flower sparsely.

One very well known subspecies is the redbud from Texas or Cercis var. texensis. Foliage is a leathery, lustrous green, adequately different from our local form and hardy here in zone 7. The form known as 'Texas White' is not difficult to find. The flowers are pure white and beautiful when contrasted against the black bark. Hybridizers are working at crossing both the 'Texas White' with 'Silver Cloud' in the hopes of developing a tree with white variegated foliage and white spring flowers.

Six species of Cercis are found growing in China, the most common is Cercis chinensis. Usually forming multi-trunked small trees or large shrubs. The stems and trunk are not nearly as dark as our native C. canadensis although the flowers mirror ours. The National Arboretum has introduced a new hybrid using a Chinese species and named it C. 'Don Egolf'. Named after one of their most famous (and wonderful) breeders. More compact, growing only nine feet tall, the flowers are said to cover the trunk to the point that it hides the woody branches and looks like bright pink flowering torches.

In good years the redbuds bloom with the dogwoods, these are always memorable years. More often they flower before the dogwoods but put on a splendid show in their abundance. There are pockets were they have seeding to the point of creating dense clusters, one of which is along Route 15 near Oatlands Plantation. Few locations look as splendid in mid-April, when they are all in flower, the rest of the trees are wearing their spring green.