Natural History

Honey Locust

Gleditsia triacanthos, Legume family (Fabaceae)

Leaves:
Leaves may be singly compound or doubly compound. Leaves are 4 to 8 inches long. Leaflets are oblong, about 1 inch long with finely wavy edges. Leaflets are dark green above, dull yellow-green below

Bark:
Bark is gray brown or black. Bark is fissured with long narrow scaly ridges. Bark has stout brown spines, usually branched, sometimes 8 inches long.

Twigs:
Twigs are stout with long unpaired spines, compared to Black Locust which has shorter paired spines.

Flowers:
Flowers are greenish-yellow, bell-shaped with five petals. Flowers are clustered at leaf bases. Blooms in late spring

Fruit:
Fruit is a long flat pod, 6 to 16 inches long, dark brown. Fruit contains many beanlike flat dark brown seeds

Honey Locust fruit. (photo source #13)

 
Honey Locust thorns are stout, long, and unpaired.
(photo source #5)