Honeylocust Tree

Botanical name:  Gleditsia triacanthos – (thornless variety – var. inermis)
Family: Fabaceae (pea)

Click on images of Honeylocust to enlarge.

honey locust - Gleditsia triacanthos - Leaf - Seeds - Thorns

A.K.A. thorny locust, honey locust, honey-locust, common honey-locust sweet locust, honey-shucks locust and (thornless common honey-locust)

  • Native
  • Deciduous
  • Reaches a mature height of 80′-100′
  • Open crown width of 45′-55′
  • Grey bark that can have thorns 12″ long.
  • Alternate bud arrangement with zigzag pattern
  • Leaves are 9″-12″ pinnately (sometimes bi-pinnately – smaller size) compound and have 20-30 leaflets that are 1.5″-2.5″ long with smooth margins
  • Has small flowers in racemes that bloom in the spring
  • Produces flat, twisting seed pods 9″-18″ in length
  • Full sun
  • Taproots can reach up to 20′
  • Variety of soils and pH
  • Common problems are cankers, collar rot, honeylocust bores, leaf hoppers, blistering beetles, eriophyid mites, honey locust spider mite, scale
  • Related to black locust
  • Zone 3-9