Princess Tree (New York City EcoFlora Volunteer Guide)

Princess Tree

Paulownia tomentosa

Summary ⁶

Paulownia tomentosa (common names princesstree, foxglove-tree, empress tree or kiri) is a deciduous tree in the family Paulowniaceae, native to central and western China. Paulownia tomentosa is an extremely fast-growing tree, and is a persistent exotic invasive in North America.

At the Garden ⁷

There is a mature specimen of Princess tree near the Edible Academy in the Garden's east side.

Description ⁸

This tree grows 10–25 m (33–82 ft) tall, with large heart-shaped to five-lobed leaves 15–40 cm (6–16 in) across, arranged in opposite pairs on the stem. On young growth, the leaves may be in whorls of three and be much bigger than the leaves on more mature growth. The leaves can be mistaken for those of the catalpa.

The very fragrant flowers are produced before the leaves in early spring, on panicles 10–30 cm long, with a tubular purple corolla 4–6 cm long resembling a foxglove flower. The fruit is a dry egg-shaped capsule 3–4 cm long, containing numerous tiny seeds. The seeds are winged and disperse by wind and water. Pollarded trees do not produce flowers, as these only form on mature wood.

Paulownia tomentosa can survive wildfire because the roots can regenerate new, very fast-growing stems. It is tolerant of pollution and it is not fussy about soil type. For this reason it functions ecologically as a pioneer plant. Its nitrogen-rich leaves provide good fodder and its roots prevent soil erosion. Eventually, Paulownia is succeeded by taller trees that shade it. It cannot thrive in the shade of other trees. It is able to grow from small cracks in pavements and walls.

Sources and Credits

(c) Rob Curtis, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), uploaded by Rob Curtis
(c) Antoine.01, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Keizersboom-(Paulownia_tomentosa)_vrucht-zaad-schil-01.jpg
anonymous, no known copyright restrictions (public domain), http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Paulowni_imperialis_SZ10.jpg
Chhe, no known copyright restrictions (public domain), http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PaulowniaTomentosaLeaf.jpg
(c) KENPEI, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Paulownia_tomentosa2.jpg
(c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paulownia_tomentosa
(c) bkmertz, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)
Adapted by bkmertz from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paulownia_tomentosa

More Info

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Princess Tree

Summary 6

At the Garden 7

Description 8