The tiny leaves of this hardy tree are an adaptation to the arid conditions where it thrives. Its profuse pink flower spikes make it popular as a small ornamental tree.

Native to warmer north-west Europe, including France, Spain, Portugal and Italy, and parts of North Africa. Considered a neophyte in Britain and Ireland but long naturalised, rarely found far from the coast and mostly confined to England and Wales, also on waste ground and as a garden escapee.

Monoecious. Insect- and wind-pollinated. Seeds dispersed by wind and water. Also spreads by suckering.

Small (8m), bushy and wide-spreading with a short trunk. Bark ashen, gnarly with close vertical ridges. Twigs brown-red, slender but knobbly, with small appressed alternate buds. Leaves minute, scale-like, spiralled, green-white. Flowers star-shaped, white tinged pink, in slender racemes (35-50mm), appearing en masse with the leaves, April-June. Fruit a small (6mm) dehiscent capsule with 10-60 tiny plumed seeds, July-September.

Thrives in most soils except shallow chalk, but otherwise tolerant of drought, floods and salinity. Prefers full sun to flower at its best. Dislikes windy sites inland.

Flowers are visited by bees, butterflies and other pollinators.

Generally healthy.

The species is useful in conserving dune and riverbanks from erosion. Traditionally the plant has been used to treat gastrointestinal disorders. It may prove well-adapted further north in Europe under a warming climate, including Britain and Ireland.