Flower profile

Mexican palo verde

Parkinsonia aculeata

Native in the lower 48

Mexican palo verde is a flowering plant that USDA PLANTS lists as native in the lower 48 states. It's on our flower lists for 2 states, and across the U.S. it's most often seen in bloom in March–June.

13states

2of our state lists

13,504U.S. sightings*

*iNaturalist research-grade observations, as of October 17, 2026.

On our lists for: Arizona, Texas

Quick look

Parkinsonia aculeata is a species of perennial flowering tree in the pea family, Fabaceae. Common names include palo verde, Mexican palo verde, Parkinsonia, Jerusalem thorn, jelly bean tree, palo de rayo, and retama.
From Wikipedia's article Parkinsonia aculeata, CC BY-SA 4.0.

It belongs to the Fabaceae family. ^iNaturalist
USDA PLANTS describes it as a shrub / a tree with a perennial life cycle. ^{USDA PLANTS}
USDA PLANTS lists it as native in the lower 48 states and records it in 13 states. ^{USDA PLANTS}
NatureServe lists it as not native to Texas and Arizona. ^NatureServe
In Texas, most iNaturalist sightings of it in flower come in March–June. ^iNaturalist
In Arizona, most iNaturalist sightings of it in flower come in March–December. ^iNaturalist
iNaturalist has 10,676 research-grade sightings of it in Texas, ranking #51 among the 109 flowers on our Texas list. ^iNaturalist
iNaturalist has 1,147 research-grade sightings of it in Arizona, ranking #90 among the 109 flowers on our Arizona list. ^iNaturalist

Mexican palo verde gift ideas

Handmade mexican palo verde gifts from independent makers.

🌱 Sample spot. Handmade gift picks from independent shops will appear here once our shop partnership is approved. These cards are placeholders, not real products.

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Mexican palo verde art print
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Mexican palo verde greeting card
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Mexican palo verde mug
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Mexican palo verde earrings
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Mexican palo verde embroidery pattern
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Mexican palo verde sticker
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When does it bloom?

Flowering records by month across the U.S. (iNaturalist research-grade observations marked “Flowering”) (1,349 records)

Bloom time in each of our 2 states

State	Type	Peak bloom	Sightings*
Texas	Introduced	March–June	10,676
Arizona	Introduced	March–December	1,147

Conservation status

Federal (U.S. ESA): Not listed No U.S. Endangered Species Act listing in the USFWS ECOS database. ^{USFWS ECOS}
NatureServe global: G5 Secure worldwide. ^NatureServe
Texas: Not listed Not on Texas endangered and threatened plants (31 Tex. Admin. Code § 69.8), as listed by Texas Parks and Wildlife. NatureServe: SNA, not applicable (usually because it isn't native there) in Texas. ^{31 TAC 69.8}
Arizona: Not listed Not on Arizona Native Plant Law protected plants (Ariz. Admin. Code R3-3 Art. 11, App. A, eff. Feb. 2, 2025). NatureServe: SNA, not applicable (usually because it isn't native there) in Arizona. ^{AAC R3-3 App. A}
Rare elsewhere: No other U.S. state ranks it S1, S2, SH or SX.

Checked October 17, 2026. Rankings and lists can change, so follow the links for the latest.

Can you eat it?

For peopleNot well documented

None of the sources we checked (NC State Extension (no page for this plant), USDA PLANTS) say whether it's edible or poisonous for people.

For petsNot well documented

It isn't on the ASPCA plant list.

🌿 Never eat a wild plant unless you're certain of its ID; this isn't medical advice. Worried about a person? Call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222. Worried about a pet? Call your vet.

Where does it grow?

USDA PLANTS records Mexican palo verde in 13 states.

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recorded by USDA PLANTS on our state lists not recorded

See the full list of states

Alabama, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, New Mexico, South Carolina, Texas, Utah.

Texas counties with USDA records: Atascosa, Bastrop, Bell, Bexar, Brazos, Brewster, Brooks, Brown, Calhoun, Cameron, Chambers, Comal, Coryell, Dallas, DeWitt, Duval, Edwards, El Paso, Frio, Galveston, Goliad, Grimes, Guadalupe, Harris, Hays, Hidalgo, Jackson, Jim Wells, Karnes, Kinney, Kleberg, La Salle, Live Oak, Madison, McLennan, McMullen, Medina, Milam, Nueces, Pecos, Presidio, Reagan, Reeves, Refugio, Robertson, San Patricio, Starr, Tarrant, Travis, Uvalde, Val Verde, Waller, Washington, Webb, Willacy, Williamson, Zapata, Zavala.

Arizona counties with USDA records: Gila, Graham, Maricopa, Pima, Pinal, Santa Cruz, Yuma.

More Texas flowers

Lupines

Lupinus

★ TX state flower

🌼 Blooms in TX: March–April

White clover

Trifolium repens

Introduced

🌼 Blooms in TX: February–June

Eastern redbud

Cercis canadensis

Native

🌼 Blooms in TX: February–April

Sources

USDA, NRCS. PLANTS Database, profile PAAC3.
iNaturalist, Parkinsonia aculeata: taxonomy, research-grade observation counts and “Flowering” annotations, retrieved October 17, 2026.
Wikipedia, Parkinsonia aculeata (lead quoted under CC BY-SA 4.0).
Texas: Texas endangered and threatened plants (31 Tex. Admin. Code § 69.8), as listed by Texas Parks and Wildlife.
Texas: Texas noxious and invasive plant list (4 Tex. Admin. Code § 19.300(a)).
Arizona: Arizona Native Plant Law protected plants (Ariz. Admin. Code R3-3 Art. 11, App. A, eff. Feb. 2, 2025).
Arizona: Arizona prohibited noxious weeds (Ariz. Admin. Code R3-4-245).
USFWS, ECOS species database (ESA listing check), October 17, 2026.
NatureServe Explorer, Parkinsonia aculeata (global and state ranks).
Edibility and toxicity: no source found (marked "not well documented").
Photo: johnyochum via iNaturalist · CC BY 4.0 · resized.