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Wednesday - August 13, 2008
From: Austin, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Plant Identification
Title: Plant identification
Answered by: Nan Hampton
QUESTION:
Can you identify a shrub in my backyard? It has odd looking seed pods with three chambers and hard black seeds inside roughly 1/8" in diameter. The pods themselves are brown, hard shell, and hang down, splitting at the bottom to drop seeds. I can email a photo if helpful. Thanks!ANSWER:
This sounds like Ungnadia speciosa (Mexican buckeye) except for the size of the seeds. In Mexican buckeye the seeds are ± 1/2 inch in diameter. If this isn't what you have in your backyard. Please send us photos showing the whole plant and a closeup of the seeds and of the leaves. Visit the Ask Mr. Smarty Plants page to read the instructions (under "Plant Identification") for submitting photos.
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