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    • Photo of Chionanthus virginicus form by Karl Gercens III

    Photo by Karl Gercens III

    Used with permission, all rights reserved

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    Buy Chionanthus virginicus

    Also Known As

    • Grancy Gray-beard
    • Grancy Graybeard
    • Old Man's Beard
    • Old-Man's-Beard
    • White Fringe Tree

    Plant type

    tree, shrub

    size

    • H: 12'-20'
    • W: 12'-20'

    planting zones

    • 4a-9b

    1 gallon bagged root ball | $31

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    Fewer than 29 at Gossler Farms

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    Chionanthus virginicus plant details

    Chionanthus virginicus is a moderate-growing broadleaf deciduous shrub or tree with green foliage. In spring and summer white flowers emerge followed by black and purple fruit. Attracts birds. Grows well with sun - bright shade and regular water. Does well in average and well-drained soil. A good option if you're seeking something pollution tolerant.

    CHARACTERISTICS OF Chionanthus virginicus

    Plant type: shrub or tree
    Plant family: oleaceae
    Foliage: deciduous green
    Mature size: 12 FT - 20 FT - wide, 12 FT - 20 FT - tall
    Flowers: white blooms in spring and summer
    Uses: award-winning, border plant, fall color, fragrant, late-to-break-dormancy, showy, unique

    GROWING CONDITIONS for Chionanthus virginicus

    USDA Zones: 4a - 9b
    Sun exposure: sun - bright shade
    Watering frequency: regular
    Resistant to: pollution
    Soil needs: average and well-drained

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    Nursery contributed plant descriptions

    Fringe tree is an eastern U.S. native. This large shrub is the last plant to leaf out in May. Don't throw out because the plant hasn't leafed out. The white flowers appear in June and look like shredded silk. A very good plant for our gardens.

    By: Gossler Farms

    The profuse lacy mist of creamy-white, fragrant, mop-like flowers on this small tree (15-20') is exquisite in spring, its lovely medium-green foliage becomes bright yellow in autumn; native to the eastern United States, there is no other flowering tree quite like our wonderfully unique fringe tree; olive-like black fruits on female plants while male plants have showier flowers, ours are unsexed seedlings. S-PSh/M

    By: Forestfarm

    White Fringe Tree is a striking accent plant.  This large shrub or small tree with upright branches puts on a show in spring with clusters of fragrant white fringe-like blooms. Use White Fringe Tree in wild and native gardens.  Beautiful against a darker backdrop of evergreens. Also known under the names Flowering Ash, Old Man's Beard and Grancy Graybeard.

    By: Maples N More Nursery

    This deciduous, large shrub blooms profusely when just 2-3'. Strappy white flowers in late spring are lightly fragrant. Bears small, stone-seed fruits that can be pickled similar to olives. Growth Rate medium

    By: Garden World

    The fragrant white flowers of this unique shrub have long narrow petals. Borne in clusters of hundreds in spring, the flowers produce an amazing floral effect as if the branches were filled with thousands of airy feathers. Blue-black fruit follow. This spreading branches unfurl the shiny deep green elliptical leaves during flowering. A wonderful specimen for a shrub border.

    By: Phoenix Perennials and Specialty Plants Ltd.

    Shiny dark green leaves and abundant, white, pleasantly fragrant flowers showcase this classy American native. Much hardier than C. retusus, it performs best in full sun and is remarkably versatile from moist lowlands to dry hillsides. Among the finest of all landscape plants.

    By: Heritage Seedlings

    An American native sometimes know as Grancy Gray-beard or Old-man's-beard. Grows as a large shrub or small tree and is well noted for abundunt fleecy white blooms and interesting growth habit. Grows to 6-10' in ten years. Matures at around 25' tall in the wild but is usually found at 12' to 20' in cultivation. Awards: Award of Merit from the Royal Horticultural Society. Recommended by: Ohio Plant Selection Committee, & the United States National Arboretum.

    By: Fantastic Plants

    Large drooping panicles of fragrant fleecy-white flowers adorn this small, native tree in spring and are followed by clusters of tiny black olive-like fruit in summer and fall and are great for birds. The Grancy Graybeard is a tough and adaptable small deciduous tree that is an excellent understory tree, as a specimen, and in urban settings. It often gets yellow fall color in northern regions but may remain evergreen in mild winter climates.

    By: Almost Eden

    Spreading deciduous shrub or sometimes small tree with glossy, dark green leaves to 8". FRAGRANT white flowers are borne in pendent panicles to 8" long in summer. Attractive specimen plants. Suitable for the shrub border. Likes long, hot summers! Pest & disease free. Our beautiful native loves our acid soil. Shown to best advantage against a dark or shaded background. Plants of Merit - Missouri Botanical Garden. If deer are a problem, probably wiser to go with Chionanthus retusus.

    By: Lazy S'S Farm Nursery

    This tree makes a splendid ornamental specimen, slowly growing and spreading to 20' in cultivation. The fluffy, white flowers are borne in early June on loose panicles 6" long or even longer. The leaves turn a bright yellow late in the fall, staying on the tree well after other trees have lost their leaves. One of the last shrubs to produce leaves in the spring, but well worth it when the soft green appears and then the feathery flowers on a rounded crown.

    By: Greer Gardens Inc.

    Clusters of fringe-like, snow-white, lightly fragrant flowers make a delicate, airy flurry in May and June, giving way to small olive-like fruits enjoyed by birds. Wide, spear-shaped leaves (to 8" long) turn yellow in autumn. Choice eastern N. American native 10' x 10' or more.

    By: Dancing Oaks Nursery

    Gardening facts about Chionanthus virginicus plant

    How to Grow Chionanthus virginicus

    • Sun Exposure

      • sun - bright shade

    • Water Needs

      • regular

    • Soil Needs

      • average
      • well-drained

    • Special Situation

      • pollution tolerant

    Features

    • Foliage Color

      • green

    • Flower Color

      • white

    • Wildlife

      • birds

    • Fruit

      • purple
      • black

    • Flower Season

      • spring
      • summer

    • Foliage Season

      • deciduous

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