Royal Empress Tree Paulownia tomentosa

This plant is problematic and alternatives should be considered.  Please see the suggestions in the left-hand column.

 The Princess Tree is a deciduous tree in the Paulowniaceae family.  It is native to eastern Asia and very common in China. The tree is named in honor of Russian Princess Anna Paulowna (1795-1865), and the species name means hairy in Latin.  It was introduced in North America around 1844 and has naturalized in the eastern U.S. due to the quantity of seeds that have escaped cultivation.

The tree tolerates a wide range of soils but prefers moist, sandy loam that is high in organic matter and well-drained.   Grow in full sun or very light shade.   As one of the fastest-growing trees, it can add 15 feet yearly to reach a mature height of 50 feet and a width of 30 feet in 10 years. Hard pruning will encourage larger trees. It is difficult to kill even after fires, cutting and bulldozing because it can sprout from roots spread several feet from the original tree.

Showy spring flowers are profuse and appear before the leaves.  The foxglove-like flowers bloom on old wood and are light purple pink, and smell like vanilla.  The attractive leaves are large and velvety soft looking similar to a catalpa tree. Woody brown seed capsules break open to reveal large quantities of winged seeds.  It is tolerant of air pollution and coastal conditions.  The wood is commercially valuable in Japan, but the American species are usually brittle.

This tree is not recommended for landscape planting.  The canopy produces dense shade making it difficult to grow plants underneath, and it competes with native plants for nutrients and water.

Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems:  Flower buds can suffer frost damage in the early spring.  This plant is weedy, messy, has weak wood and is listed as an invasive species by the NC Invasive Plant Council, North Carolina Forest Service, USDA National Invasive Species Information Center; the Invasive Plant Atlas of the United States