Who knows about a Royal Empress Tree (Paulownia)?

My son, a recent transplant to Charlotte, North Carolina from Ohio, is trying to find some suitable trees for his yard. He e-mailed me a URL for this site he had ... http://www.fastgrowingtree.com/fgt/indesT2.htm ...

Notwithstandfing, I had some suspicions about the tree when they don't even try to openly give you a botanical name. I am not familiar with trees or shrubs for NC. He is getting a gift certificate for his birthday from Plant Delights Nursery, Inc. .. http://www.plantdelights.com ... , a mail-order company in Raleigh, NC. Where else can I steer him?

A loving greenthumb mother,
Karin

Hi Karin,

Please check to see if Paulownia is considered a noxious weed in your area. I like the tree and grow it but it is not considered a problem here. I have seen seedlings growing 7-10' in the first year. Check this USDA link out: http://plants.usda.gov/cgi_bin/topics.cgi?earl=plant_profile.cgi&symbol=PATO2

As for other trees you may consider Camellia Forest Nursery: http://www.camforest.com/

You might have him contact JC Raulston Arboretum at NC State University: http://www.ncsu.edu/jcraulstonarboretum/ for recommendations.

I can recommend a number of better trees that aren't a potential weed but what is he wanting it for? What climate zone is he in?

greenthumb go to-----------------Paulownia trees.com Dottie is the gal in the big hat

Growin,
He moved to Charlotte, North Carolina in June from Columbus, Ohio. I believe he is in Zone 7A now. Seems like a place where I could move to very easily.

I will check out Arp Tiger's idea and yours. Thank you.

The Loving Greenthumb mother,

Karin

I am growing one from seed and it is two feet tall since this spring. If something grows that fast, though, it will probably come tumbling down pretty easily.
I am just growing it to see what it becomes. I like starting things from seed.

It is a very sought after wood in Japan. It will grow 10' the first year with foliage up to almost 3' across. It will slow down as it ages. The flowers come out before the foliage so it looks wonderful but the seed pods are ugly. Where I study they actually use a cherry picker and send up a guy with pruners to cut them off. I live in zone 5 and they can grow here but everything I've read says they won't bloom. Thank goodness the trees can't read because the bloom here. Where they are growing they are beginning to increase. So beware.

Paulownia is pretty notorious as one of the top ten or so exotic pest trees in the Southeast. (To put that in context, others on such a list might be Ailanthus, popcorn tree, punk tree, Siberian elm, chinaberry, etc.) And further north, like here in Illinois, it is subject to occasional dieback in severe winters and to breakage under ice loading. And don't plan to get rich sending the wood to Japan either, unless you have a commercial-size plantation of cultured, pruned, straight logs of sufficient diameter for the purpose. Most yard trees are worth nothing at all. Please suggest to your son that he look for something better.

There are many good information resources in North Carolina. Go up into the mountains and check out Chimney Rock Park, where one of the best tree experts in North America (Ron Lance) is the horticulture manager. Go to the Stowe Botanic Garden right there near Charlotte and ask their director (Mike Bush) for advice, or the Raulston Arboretum at NC State. Talk with local extension people, master gardeners, and quality nurseries (a "quality nursery", for example, is one that would never sell you a Paulownia!). Read some books, whether mine or someone else's, that give you the information you need to make a better decision.

Guy S.

Please tell me what your book is Starhillforest....thanks Nancy

Nancy, I'm not sure we're allowed to do that on the forum -- will I get kicked off for self-advertising? If you send me a D-Mail I'll get back to you privately about it, and I can even mail you an inscribed copy at cost if you're interested. Anyway, there are other books Karin could use also. The main point is to elevate the thought process beyond problem species like Paulownia.

Guy S.

http://www.timberpress.com/books/isbn.cfm/0-88192-607-8

Regarding Mimosa (Albizia julibrissin) and the Princess Tree (Paulownia tomentosa), they're on the Fed's list as noxious weeds. They are both fast growing trees that are adapatable to virtually all soil types and pH, they can make it through dessicating winds, severe droughts, and these monsters have and continue to escape cultivation. Their adaptive traits have made them fierce competition to native flora. For all practical purposes, once they made it to North American soil they received diplomatic immunity. There are few stops when it comes to these trees.

http://www.gaeppc.org/workshops/tifton05/evans.pdf#search='mimosa%20Paulownia'

From this web site-
http://www.newfs.org/conserve/invasive.htm
I cut and pasted the following which about sums it up-

"Most species have predators in their natural range that keep their population numbers in check. When new species are introduced, however, they come without their natural predators.

Most invasive species produce copious amounts of seed. This seed is often bird- or wind-dispersed, allowing it to cover great distances in a short period of time.

Some invasives have aggressive root systems that can spread long distances from a single plant. These root systems often grow so densely that they smother the root systems of surrounding vegetation.

Some species produce chemicals in their leaves or root systems which inhibit the growth of other plants around them.

Most invasives cast extremely dense shade beneath which native vegetation can not survive.

Most invasives thrive on disturbed soil, such as that around newly developed land, or along highways.

As our region becomes more fragmented, through development, local habitats become more vulnerable to invasives. "


This message was edited Nov 8, 2005 1:18 AM

I wouldn't recommend a Paulownia to anyone!!
They are virtually IMPOSSIBLE to kill, which is not a virtue once you realize that the tree is rattier and less attractive than you hoped it would be.

Half the branches are always dead.
In dry stretches of summer, the leaves hang like dishrags.

Once you finally realize that your Paulownia is a giant weed, you're stuck with it! Try to remove it, and 5 more will grow back every year, forever!

Catalpa is a far better choice. It's fast growing, has big heart-shaped leaves, and huge pretty flowers, without the serious drawbacks that Paulownia has.

Northern Catalpa is an excellent choice. Welcome to the forums undercover_owl!

Hey Owl -- nice to have you aboard over here at DG! And your comments about Paulownia ring true. Go check out that mimosa thread while you're here!
Guy S.