Palo Piejo
Erythrostemon palmeri
Family: Fabaceae
Tropical shrub or small tree, in our region usually about 6+ feet tall, but in frost free area can get up to 20’ as a small, multi-trunked tree. Evergreen until about 25°F and may sustain foliar and small twig damage.
Can come back from cold snaps down to 20°F. Low to moderate water, full to part sun.
The yellow flowers in summer attract butterflies, hummingbirds, bees and other pollinators.
Rare in the trade. Formally known as Caesalpinia palmeri. The common name for Erythrostemon palmeri is palo piojo, which refers to the lenticels on the bark. Piojo means "lice". The word "erythrostemon" comes from the Greek words erythro meaning "red" and stemon meaning "stamen". The species, palmeri, is an honorific for Edward Palmer (1829-1911), an American explorer and botanical collector.
In thornscrub, desert scrub, and also disturbed soils in Sonora and Sinaloa.
This plant can reach tree proportions, photo by J. Fernando Pío León, iNaturalist
A shrubby specimen photographed by Sue Carnahan, iNaturalist
The seed pods will spit their seeds a good distance when they dry, photo by Oscar Israel Trejo, iNaturalist
The trunk showing the lenticels that give the plant its common name, photo by conabio-pj010, iNaturalist