How To Grow And Care For A Ruby Lace Honey Locust?

The Ruby Lace honey locust is a thornless, seedless cultivar of the native honey locust tree, prized for its fine-textured burgundy foliage that holds its color well into summer. It grows best in full sun and well-drained soil, tolerates drought once established, and needs little beyond occasional pruning and deep watering during its first few years. Plant it in spring or fall, keep the root zone mulched, and it will reward you with a graceful, low-maintenance shade tree that produces no messy seed pods.

What Exactly Is a Ruby Lace Honey Locust?

The honey locust is a North American native tree, Gleditsia triacanthos, historically known for two traits: long, dangerous thorns and large, twisted seed pods. Ruby Lace is a cultivated variety selected to eliminate both problems.

It is thornless. It is essentially seedless or near-seedless. And its new growth emerges a deep burgundy-red before settling into a dark reddish-green that holds better than the foliage of many other purple-leaf selections.

The parent species is a legume, related to beans and peas. Like other legumes, honey locusts form a relationship with nitrogen-fixing bacteria in the soil, which allows them to grow in poorer soils than many shade trees. This is one reason the species is often described as tough and adaptable.

Ruby Lace is a deciduous tree. It drops its leaves in fall, typically without much color display — the leaves tend to go from greenish-burgundy to yellow-brown and fall quickly. Its small, compound leaves are one of its best features for lawns, because they break down quickly and rarely need raking.

How To Grow And Care For A Ruby Lace Honey Locust?

Plant it in full sun in well-drained soil, water deeply and regularly for the first two to three growing seasons, then reduce watering as the tree establishes. Beyond that, care is minimal: light pruning, a layer of mulch, and attention to a few known pest and disease issues.

Here is what matters at each stage.

Choosing a Site

Full sun is not optional. Honey locusts in shade grow slowly, develop weak structure, and lose the dense foliage color that makes Ruby Lace worth planting. Aim for at least six hours of direct sun, ideally more.

Soil drainage matters more than soil richness. The species tolerates poor, rocky, compacted, and alkaline soils, but it does not tolerate standing water. If your site holds water after rain, choose a different tree.

Give it room. Honey locusts are medium to large shade trees at maturity, and Ruby Lace is no exception. Planting it too close to a foundation, driveway, or power line creates problems that pruning cannot fix.

Planting

Spring and early fall are both reasonable planting windows in most of the United States. Fall planting gives roots a head start in mild climates; spring planting is safer where winters are severe.

Dig a hole wider than the root ball but no deeper. Planting too deep is one of the most common reasons young trees struggle. The top of the root flare — where the trunk widens into the roots — should sit at or slightly above ground level.

Do not amend the backfill heavily with compost or fertilizer. Research on tree establishment has generally found that trees grow best when roots are encouraged to spread into native soil rather than staying in a rich pocket.

Watering

Newly planted trees need consistent moisture for the first two to three growing seasons. Deep, infrequent watering encourages roots to grow downward. Shallow daily watering encourages surface roots and a weaker tree.

Once established, honey locusts are genuinely drought-tolerant. That said, “drought-tolerant” does not mean “never water.” During extended dry periods, an occasional deep soak helps maintain vigor and foliage color.

Mulch and Fertilizer

A two- to three-inch layer of mulch over the root zone conserves moisture and moderates soil temperature. Keep mulch a few inches away from the trunk. Piling mulch against the bark invites rot and pests.

Fertilizer is usually unnecessary. Honey locusts fix nitrogen through a root relationship with soil bacteria, and they perform well in lean soils. If a soil test shows a specific deficiency, address that rather than applying a general-purpose fertilizer on a schedule.

Pruning

Young honey locusts benefit from structural pruning to develop a strong central leader and well-spaced branches. Late winter, while the tree is dormant, is the standard time for this work.

Mature trees need little pruning beyond removing dead, damaged, or crossing branches. Honey locusts can produce vigorous watersprouts — fast-growing shoots from the trunk or main branches — and these can be removed as they appear.

Avoid heavy pruning in late summer or early fall. Wounds made then may not seal before cold weather arrives.

What Pests and Diseases Should You Watch For?

Honey locusts have a few well-documented problems. Knowing them helps you catch issues early.

• Honey locust plant bug — causes distorted, stunted new growth in spring. Damage is usually cosmetic and the tree recovers.
• Spider mites — more likely in hot, dry conditions. Look for fine webbing and stippled, faded leaves.
• Bagworms — caterpillars that build cone-shaped cases from foliage and silk. Handpick small populations.
• Borers — larvae that tunnel under bark. Stressed trees are most vulnerable.
• Canker diseases — fungal infections that cause sunken, dead areas on branches or trunks. Usually linked to wounding or stress.
• Verticillium wilt — a soilborne fungus that can cause branch dieback. There is no cure; management focuses on reducing stress.

The common thread is stress. A tree planted in the right spot, watered properly during establishment, and not over-pruned is far less likely to be seriously damaged by any of these.

How Fast Does a Ruby Lace Honey Locust Grow?

Honey locusts are considered fast-growing. Under good conditions, a young tree can put on a substantial amount of height each year, though growth rate depends heavily on site, water, and climate.

Fast growth has a tradeoff. Trees that grow quickly often have softer wood and are more prone to storm damage than slow-growing species. Structural pruning when the tree is young helps reduce that risk by encouraging well-attached branches.

The tree’s lifespan is moderate for a shade tree — typically several decades, not centuries. That is worth knowing if you are planting for the long term.

Is Ruby Lace a Good Choice for Your Yard?

For the right site, yes. It offers fine texture, unusual foliage color, no thorns, no seed pods, and a level of toughness that few ornamental trees match.

It is not the right tree for every yard, though. It needs sun and space. Its burgundy color fades somewhat in intense summer heat. And like the species, it can be short-lived in stressful urban sites.

If you want a tree that asks for almost nothing after the first few years, tolerates poor soil, and looks distinctive without being fussy, Ruby Lace is a strong candidate. If you have shade, poor drainage, or limited space, look elsewhere.