''Gleditsia aquatica'', commonly called water locust or swamp locust after its habitat of river swamps and

slough Slough () is a town in Berkshire, England, in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the M4, M40 and M25 motorways. It is part of the historic county of Buckinghamshire. In 2021, the ...

margins, is a tree native to the

Southeastern United States The Southeastern United States, also known as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical List of regions in the United States, region of the United States located in the eastern portion of the Southern United States and t ...

and adjacent regions.

Description

''Gleditsia aquatica'' often grows 50 to 60 feet. It is commonly found in swamps and prefers partial sun. Like the other plants in its family (

Fabaceae Fabaceae () or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomen ...

) it produces a flat legume (pod). However, these pods usually only hold one seed. The leaves are usually simple-compounded, but sometimes appears

Acacia ''Acacia'', commonly known as wattles or acacias, is a genus of about of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa, South America, and Austral ...

.^{/sup>

Range and habitat

This water locust is found mainly in the southern regions of the United States. It is native to the Southeast, from Florida west to eastern Texas, north to Illinois. It can be found as far north as Ohio, southern New York and southwestern Connecticut. It is hardy to zones 6–9.

Natural hybrids have been found to occur where ''G. aquatica'' overlaps with the range of ''Gleditsia triacanthos

The honey locust (''Gleditsia triacanthos''), also known as the thorny locust or thorny honeylocust, is a deciduous tree in the family Fabaceae, native to central North America where it is mostly found in the moist soil of river valleys. Honey ...
.''

References

External links

Water Locust ''Gleditsia aquatica''
Diagnostic photographs and information. Morton Arboretum

The Morton Arboretum, in Lisle, Illinois, United States, is a public garden and outdoor museum with a library, herbarium, and program in tree research including the Center for Tree Science. Its grounds, covering 1,700 acres (6.9 square kilometre ...
acc. 432-54-1

aquatica
Trees of Northern America
Flora of Texas

{{Fabaceae-tree-stub}