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Chinese Mahogany Toona sinensis

Previously known as:

  • Cedrela sinensis
Phonetic Spelling
SEED-rel-uh sy-NEN-sis
Description

Chinese Toon is a tree in the mahogany family that can grow up to 65 feet tall and 30 feet wide with an oval spreading form. It produces small flowers in pendulous clusters in spring and the fruit is a star-shaped capsule resembling a wooden rose. The tree will spread by suckers and form stands if let be. It will also spread by seeds. 

Chinese Toon is tolerant of any pH and adapts to various soil types but prefers moist well-drained soil in full sun to partial shade. It is often cut back to keep it shorter and to have more of a shrub shape. Use as a shade tree, specimen or street tree.

 

See this plant in the following landscape:
Cultivars / Varieties:
  • 'Flamingo'
    Bight pink flowers
'Flamingo'
Tags:
#deciduous#shade tree#full sun tolerant#white flowers#street tree#fast growing#adaptable#single trunk#suckers#multitrunked
 
Cultivars / Varieties:
  • 'Flamingo'
    Bight pink flowers
'Flamingo'
Tags:
#deciduous#shade tree#full sun tolerant#white flowers#street tree#fast growing#adaptable#single trunk#suckers#multitrunked
  • Attributes:
    Genus:
    Toona
    Species:
    sinensis
    Family:
    Meliaceae
    Uses (Ethnobotany):
    Timber is hard and reddish and used for furniture and guitars.
    Life Cycle:
    Woody
    Country Or Region Of Origin:
    Asia
    Edibility:
    Young leaves are used as a vegetable in China and reddish leaves taste best. They have a floral yet onion-like flavor. Leaves are aslo used to make toona paste and used as a condiment.
    Dimensions:
    Height: 30 ft. 0 in. - 65 ft. 0 in.
    Width: 15 ft. 0 in. - 30 ft. 0 in.
  • Whole Plant Traits:
    Plant Type:
    Tree
    Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
    Deciduous
    Habit/Form:
    Erect
    Oval
    Growth Rate:
    Rapid
    Maintenance:
    Medium
    Texture:
    Medium
  • Cultural Conditions:
    Light:
    Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
    Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
    Soil Texture:
    Clay
    Loam (Silt)
    Sand
    Soil pH:
    Acid (<6.0)
    Alkaline (>8.0)
    Neutral (6.0-8.0)
    Soil Drainage:
    Good Drainage
    Moist
    NC Region:
    Coastal
    Mountains
    Piedmont
    USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
    5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b
  • Fruit:
    Fruit Color:
    Brown/Copper
    Fruit Type:
    Capsule
    Fruit Length:
    < 1 inch
    Fruit Width:
    < 1 inch
    Fruit Description:
    Fruit is a woody, star-shaped capsule .5-1 inch long
  • Flowers:
    Flower Color:
    White
    Flower Inflorescence:
    Panicle
    Flower Bloom Time:
    Spring
    Summer
    Flower Size:
    < 1 inch
    Flower Description:
    4 mm white to pale pink, flowers on 12 in. pendulous panicles in May-June
  • Leaves:
    Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
    Deciduous
    Leaf Color:
    Green
    Purple/Lavender
    Red/Burgundy
    Deciduous Leaf Fall Color:
    Gold/Yellow
    Leaf Type:
    Compound (Pinnately , Bipinnately, Palmately)
    Leaf Arrangement:
    Alternate
    Leaf Margin:
    Entire
    Serrate
    Hairs Present:
    No
    Leaf Length:
    1-3 inches
    Leaf Width:
    1-3 inches
    Leaf Description:
    10-20 in. long alternate, pinnately compound leaves with 10-22 leaflets that are 2.5-5.5 inches long with entire or slightly serrate margins. The end leaflet is usually absent, but not always. New growth opens reddish-purple.
  • Bark:
    Bark Color:
    Dark Brown
    Dark Gray
    Surface/Attachment:
    Exfoliating
    Fissured
    Bark Description:
    Bark gray to dark brown and smooth when young, becoming fissured and peeling with age. Inner bark pink to red. Has a garlic and pepper smell when cut.
  • Stem:
    Stem Is Aromatic:
    No
  • Landscape:
    Landscape Location:
    Lawn
    Design Feature:
    Shade Tree
    Specimen
    Street Tree