Clammy Locust is a rare shrub that grows natively in North Carolina in the southern 2/3 of the Mountain region. It also occasionally escapes from cultivation throughout the state.

Whiteside Mountain, Jackson Co., NC 5/14/06.

The branches are covered with viscid short-stalked glands. The branches of the similar, but rarer R. hartwigii are covered with short glandular-pubescent hairs. R. hartwigii occurs only near Highlands, NC and can hybridize with R. viscosa. Whiteside Mountain has both species, plus hybrids. Also compare with Bristly Locust (Robinia hispida), which is densely covered with longer stout, bristly hairs, lacking the viscid glands.

Whiteside Mountain, Jackson Co., NC 5/14/06.