Opposite palmately compounds with 5 leaflets. Oval to obovate leaflets is 3 to 6 inches long with a serrated margin, rachis about as long as leaflets.Dark green above and paler below. Strong fetid odor when crushed.
Flower
Light yellow, in large, 4 to 7-inch, showy, upright clusters. Stamens are longer than petals. Appear from April to May.
Fruit
Prickly, leathery husk enclosing usually 1 smooth chestnut brown seed (1 to 1 1/2 inches in diameter). Borne on a stout stalk and mature in October.
Twig
Stout, with a large shield-shaped leaf scar. Fetid odor when broken. Terminal buds are large, orangish brown with keeled scales. Opposite lateral buds are much smaller.
Bark
Initially smooth, ashy gray but later developing corky, scaly patches, becoming quite rough and darker gray.
Form
Upright, medium-sized tree, 60 to 80 feet tall, 2 feet in diameter. Oblong crown with pendulous up-turning branches.
Copyright 2019 Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental
Conservation; Photos and text by: John Seiler, Edward Jensen,
Alex Niemiera, and John Peterson; Silvics reprinted from Ag
Handbook 654; range map source information
