Brush - Range & Pasture - Retama

BES-TEX BRUSH ID GUIDE

Retama

Retama, Jerusalem Thorn

Parkinsonia aculeata

Perennial Woody Brush

Plant Type

Green-barked thorny shrub or small tree; legume family (Fabaceae)

Life Cycle

Perennial

Leaf Habit

[PLACEHOLDER]

Typical Height

10 to 15 ft (Texas A&M)

Photo Gallery

Open, airy retama tree with drooping green branches in a dry field — **Whole Plant** Photo: Zeynel Cebeci, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Retama yellow flowers on long, thin, ribbon-like leaf stalks — **Flowers and Leaves** Photo: Neelix, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

How to Identify It

Quick ID

Bark & Spines

Green bark
Needle-sharp spines that turn up slightly (Texas A&M)

Leaves

Feathery foliage; alternate, twice-compound leaves
Many leaflets per branch (Texas A&M)

Flowers

Yellow, five petals, one with red spots (Texas A&M)

Pods

Brown, many-seeded pod up to 4 inches long (Texas A&M)

Look-Alikes

Paloverde

How to tell it apart from retama: [PLACEHOLDER]

Counter script: "If it is a thorny shrub with green bark, long feathery leaves, and yellow flowers with one red-spotted petal, it is most likely retama."

Where It Grows

Texas

Ecoregions (Texas A&M): Gulf Prairies and Marshes, Post Oak Savannah, Blackland Prairies, Cross Timbers and Prairies, South Texas Plains, Edwards Plateau, Trans-Pecos

Oklahoma

[PLACEHOLDER]

New Mexico

[PLACEHOLDER]

Sites and soils: Grows in moist, poorly drained areas (Texas A&M).

Best Time to Control

Best treatment timing for retama: [PLACEHOLDER]. Follow the product label.

Retama is a woody perennial. No pre-emergent herbicide controls retama.

Treatment Methods

Herbicide Options

We did not find a Corteva non-restricted product label or Texas A&M Brush Busters guide that lists retama. Call BES-TEX for help choosing a labeled option.
Rates and mixes: follow the label

Individual Plant vs. Broadcast

Density guidance for this plant: [PLACEHOLDER]
Follow the label for broadcast use

Product names are examples only. Always read and follow the product label. For product selection and help, contact BES-TEX at 325.653.1300.

Sources: Texas A&M Plants of Texas Rangelands. No Corteva non-restricted label or Brush Busters guide found listing retama.