Illustration
Kentucky Coffeetree
Gymnocladus dioicus
Also called coffeetree, kentucky coffee tree and chicot
Kentucky Coffeetree blooms from May through June.
Months here are Northern Hemisphere months; in the Southern Hemisphere, shift them by six months.
Growing Kentucky Coffeetree
Plant it in full sun. It prefers moderate water. It is hardy in USDA zones 3–8. Expect it to reach about 69 ft tall and 46 ft wide at maturity, in roughly 12 years (a house reading).
Is Kentucky Coffeetree toxic to dogs or cats?
- Listed as toxic to dogs by NC State Extension and Royal Horticultural Society.
- Listed as toxic to cats by NC State Extension.
- Listed as poisonous to people by NC State Extension and Royal Horticultural Society.
Lists differ and none is complete. If a pet eats a plant and seems unwell, call a veterinarian or a pet poison helpline.
What was checked
Nine facts were checked against named botanical sources, each recorded beside the sources that carried it: mature height and spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, the trait tags, and years to mature size, which rests on a recorded house rule where no publisher states one and is marked so. Soil, diseases, pests, toxicity and the plant's own names have not yet been read for this plant, and its trait tags are the ones a feature uses rather than every word a page prints. Each fact above carries its own mark. The planting, spacing and size sections are derived from these checked facts by a fixed rule, not checked separately, and the plant type is the library's own classification.
When to plant Kentucky Coffeetree
Plant Kentucky Coffeetree in early spring as soon as the soil is workable, or in early fall at least six weeks before your first frost, so roots establish in cool weather. In zone 5, the middle of its hardy zones 3 to 8, spring means April to June and fall means August or September. Once settled, it blooms from May to June.
Month-by-month timing for your zone is on the planting calendar; if you garden near zone 5, the middle of this plant's hardy range, start with zone 5 in April. Derived from the plant's category, zones and bloom months plus typical zone frost dates, not checked separately.
How big does Kentucky Coffeetree get?
69 fttall5 ft 7 inan adult46 ftwideSee Kentucky Coffeetree in a garden plan: the planner shows it in 3D beside everything else you add, growing toward this size over the years.
How far apart to plant Kentucky Coffeetree
Derived from the mature spread above by a fixed rule, not checked separately: spacing is the spread, center to center.
Give Kentucky Coffeetree about 46 ft of clear ground in every direction, measured from its center. It is one plant with room around it, not a row, and a raised bed is too small for it.
Add Kentucky Coffeetree to a garden plan and the planner draws it at its full width, so you see the spacing before you buy.
Where these facts come from
Kentucky Coffeetree's height, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags were checked against 8 published sources on October 24, 2026. Each one is linked below with every fact it carried, which can include a fact this page still marks as not yet checked, because a source carrying a value is not the same as the value being held to the standard. Facts not in that list, and the planting, spacing and size sections, are not covered by these sources.
- Missouri Botanical Gardenheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
- NC State Extensionheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
- naturalresources.extension.iastate.eduIowa State University Extension and Outreachheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, bloom months and color and trait tags
- The Morton Arboretumheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, bloom months and color and trait tags
- buyvatrees.comVirginia Department of Forestry, Augusta Nurseryheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun and bloom months and color
- RHSRoyal Horticultural Societyheight, spread, sun, water and bloom months and color
- extension.sdstate.eduSouth Dakota State University Extensionwater and bloom months and color
- nfs.unl.eduNebraska Forest Service, University of Nebraska-Lincolnheight, spread and water
How the checking works, and what each standard covers, is on the verified plants page.
Where it grows wild
Native to 25 states and 1 province
United States: Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and 13 more
Canada: Ontario
Recorded growing wild in 583 counties.
Also grows wild, but is not native, in District of Columbia.
Range data from the World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 4.0, adapted) and USDA PLANTS. How the native range is credited.
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Drop this plant onto a 3D plan, see how it fills in, and watch your whole garden bloom across the year.