Any of the shrubs or small trees that make up the genus Cercis (family Leguminosae), native to North America, southern Europe, and Asia, and widely planted for their showy early-spring flowers and interesting branch patterns.
Clusters of small, purplish-pink flowers appear on old stems and branches before the leaves unfurl. The heart-shaped to roundish leaves quickly turn from bronzy to bright green, then to yellow in fall. The eastern redbud ( C. canadensis ) is the hardiest species.
Eastern redbud (Cercis canadensis)
Kenneth & Brenda Formanek/EB Inc.