MELBOURNE STREET TREES 11

Robinia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae, native to North America and northern Mexico. Commonly known as "locust trees", they are deciduous trees and shrubs growing 4–25 m tall. The leaves are pinnate with 7-21 oval leaflets. The flowers are white or pink, in usually pendulous racemes. Many species have thorny shoots, and several have sticky hairs on the shoots.

The genus is named after the royal French gardeners Jean Robin and his son Vespasian Robin, who introduced the plant to Europe in 1601. The number of species is disputed between different authorities, with as few as four recognised by some authors, while others recognise up to ten species. There are also several natural hybrids. Some species of Robinia are used as food by larvae of Lepidoptera, including Brown-tail, Buff-tip, The Engrailed and Giant Leopard Moth.
These introduced, exotic trees are widely planted along nature strips in many Melbourne suburbs. Their fragrant bunches of white flowers and chartreuse-coloured leaves provide a joyous announcement of the Spring season.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.