North Carolina Wildflowers, Shrubs, & Trees

by Jeffrey S. Pippen | Back to Jeff's Plant Page | Jeff's Nature Pages


Fabaceae > Robinia (locust)

Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia)
Roadside in Moore Co., NC
20 Apr 2008

Common and considered weedy in many places, Black Locust is found statewide in North Carolina in various wooded and disturbed habitats. Leaves are compound with many leaflets.

Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia)
Roadside in Moore Co., NC
20 Apr 2008

Clusters of fragrant pea-like flowers are produced in springtime.

Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia)
Roadside in Moore Co., NC
20 Apr 2008

Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia)
Roadside in Moore Co., NC
20 Apr 2008

Fruits are legumes that ripen in the fall.

Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia)
Roadside in Moore Co., NC
20 Apr 2008

Pairs of acacia-like thorns adorn the stem where leaves grow (or grew).

Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia)
Roadside in Moore Co., NC
20 Apr 2008

Bark of fairly small tree. Older tree bark becomes ridged & fissured with a diamond-shaped pattern.


Bristly Locust (Robinia hispida) Bristly Locust (Robinia hispida)
Orange Co., NC
15 May 2007
Bristly Locust (Robinia hispida) Bristly Locust (Robinia hispida)
Orange Co., NC
15 May 2007
Bristly Locust (Robinia hispida) Bristly Locust (Robinia hispida)
Orange Co., NC
15 May 2007
Bristly Locust (Robinia hispida) Bristly Locust (Robinia hispida)
Orange Co., NC
15 May 2007

Dwarf Bristly Locust (Robinia nana)
Sandhills Gamelands, NC
28 Apr 2019
Dwarf Bristly Locust (Robinia nana)
Sandhills Gamelands, NC
28 Apr 2019

Uncommon in eastern NC



Annotated habitat and distribution information listed above is from Radford, Ahles, & Bell. 1968. Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas. UNC Press; Alan Weakley's Flora of the Carolinas, Virginia, and Georgia; and from personal observations and discussions with Will Cook, Harry LeGrand, and Bob Wilbur. Supplemental resources include USDA plants website, and NatureServe.


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Created on ... Nov 18, 2006 | jeffpippen9@gmail.com