Facts on the Mimosa Tree

Some people refer to the mimosa tree as a powder-puff tree, since its flowers look like a cheerleader's pom-poms. An invasive species not native to the United States, this member of the pea family has leaves that look like ferns.

Invasive

The mimosa came to the United States in 1745 from China as an ornamental species, states the National Forest Service website, but it now grows in the wild in dense thickets that prevent sunlight from reaching native plants.

Geography

The American range of the mimosa tree includes every southern state from California eastward to Florida. It grows from south of the Great Lakes into New York State and in almost all of the eastern part of the country except New England.

Size

The mimosa tree is usually between 20 and 30 feet high but it can grow as tall as 50 feet. It has leaves that are 5 to 8 inches in length and about 4 inches wide. Its fruit develops into 6-inch long pods.

Features

The flowers of a mimosa tree are pink and bloom through the summer, according to the National Audubon Society Field Guide to Trees. These flowers have long, pink stamens that look like threads and grow in clusters on the mimosa.

Seedpods

A mimosa tree's seedpods will still be on the tree well into the winter but they ripen by September, opening up and dispersing the small brown seeds.

References

• National Forest Service: Silk Tree
• "National Audubon Society Field Guide to Trees, Eastern Region;" Elbert Little; 2008