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    • Photo of Paulownia tomentosa form by Liné1

    Photo by Liné1

    Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported

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    Buy Paulownia tomentosa

    Also Known As

    • Paulownia coreana
    • Paulownia glabrata
    • Paulownia tomentosa var. tsinlingensis
    • Empress Tree
    • Hairy Paulownia
    • Princess Tree
    • Royal Paulownia

    Plant type

    tree

    size

    • H: 30'-60'
    • W: 20'-30'

    planting zones

    • 5a-10b

    4 inch pot | $17

    Ships USPS, based on weight/location

    Fewer than 20 at Secret Garden Growers

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    Paulownia tomentosa plant details

    Paulownia tomentosa is a broadleaf deciduous tree with green foliage. In spring blue and purple flowers emerge. Attracts bees, butterflies and hummingbirds making it an excellent addition to pollinator gardens. Grows well with sun - mostly sun and regular - low water. Drought tolerant once established. Adapts to various soil conditions. Does well in average, rich and well-drained soil. A good option if you're seeking something heat tolerant and humidity tolerant.

    CHARACTERISTICS OF Paulownia tomentosa

    Plant type: tree
    Plant family: paulowniaceae
    Foliage: deciduous green
    Mature size: 20 FT - 30 FT - wide, 30 FT - 60 FT - tall
    Flowers: blue and purple blooms in spring
    Uses: big leaves, fragrant

    GROWING CONDITIONS for Paulownia tomentosa

    USDA Zones: 5a - 10b
    Sun exposure: sun - mostly sun
    Watering frequency: regular - low
    Resistant to: heat and humidity
    Soil needs: average, rich and well-drained

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    Nursery contributed plant descriptions

    "Amongst the grandest of ornamental flowering trees" (50-75')... fragrant purple foxglove-like flowers on 10" upright stalks provide a wonderful spring display. It is easily grown and gives excellent dense shade. S/M

    By: Forestfarm

    (EMPRESS TREE) FAST growing deciduous tree to 40’ with BIG leaves and upright stalks of foxglove-like lavender flowers in spring - Grows up to 10’ per year in full sun and most soils – not fussy! Some ‘mad gardeners’ cut this to nubbins each year which results in HUGE leaves on a shrubby plant that adds some significant BOLD to the garden (no flowers with this treatment). USDA Z7 4” pot

    By: Secret Garden Growers

    A tough species that is tolerant growing in poor soils and drought conditions, the Empress Tree produces thousands of large pink flowers in the spring before the leaves start to emerge. Once the flowering season is done the leaves emerge and grow from one to two feet long and almost as wide, creating an instant tropical appearance. Trees can be grown in either a shrub form by pruning the tops back or in tree form by removing all but one trunk in the winter, without pruning Empress Trees will typically form a 2-3 trunk tree with wide branches. They are popular in parks where they provide shade for a large area and are popular as they are one of the most colorful large trees in the spring. You need a fair amount of space in your landscape for this species to reach its full potential but gardeners with smaller yards have been very successful pruning these into smaller forms. They bloom on old wood so heavy winter pruning can reduce flowering the next spring, with Empress Trees any heavy pruning should be done in early summer.
    Very cold winters can reduce flowering the next spring, this is mostly an issue in zone 5 but can also affect growers in zone 6 when planting in very exposed locations. For growers in very cold climates flowering is greatly improved by planting in areas protected from strong winter winds.

    Empress Trees prefer full sun in well drained soil, they are typically intolerant of heavy clay soils in flat landscapes. If you have heavy clay soils you can still grow this tree by planting on a mound of well drained soil, for large trees like this the mound should be 4-5 feet in diameter and at least two feet tall. An easy and cheap method for creating landscape mounds is to dump a few cubic yards of conifer bark (not wood chips) such as pine, fir, spruce, or hemlock. Till or mix the bark in with some of your native soil and pile the material into a mound, you can plant the tree directly in the center of the mound. Bark chips and shreds take a very long time to break down compared to wood chips and provide excellent drainage and soil aeration with the coarse fibers.


    Shipping
    Unlike most trees, Empress Trees tend to re-sprout from the base each year while young while the leader from the previous year dies back. Trees are shipped pruned back to around six inches tall, plant with the top of the roots covered by about one inch of soil. The following year a new stem will grow from the crown of the roots. Once the roots are established the existing trunk will persist and form a permanent tree. Even as trees grow into a permanent form the growing tip will end with a flower in the summer so trees will typically produce a wide branched form starting low to the ground. If you wish you can prune the side branches each summer to force a straight trunk.

    By: Red Panda Nursery

    The empress tree or princess tree is a fast-growing, deciduous tree that is primarily grown for its profuse spring bloom of foxglove-like flowers.

    By: Phoenix Perennials and Specialty Plants Ltd.

    Dragon tree is highly prized for its wood in the orient, it can grow to 75' in just 15-18 years if left un-pruned but in the U.S. it is generally coppiced (cut to the ground each year), it will then produce a shoot with immense 3-4' wide leaves, reaching 20' in a single season. Planted near a house it is supposed to attract the phoenix and bring good luck (don't tempt fate plant one just to be on the safe side), it flowers young often in as few as three years if fertilized well, big clusters of lavender centered white foxglove flowers. The wood is highly prized in Japan and China, Empress Tree is traditionally planted when a daughter is born and cut to make a dowry box when she marries. It is probably the most asked about tree in our display gardens.

    By: Arrowhead Alpines

    Awards: Award of Merit & Award of Garden Merit from the Royal Horticultural Society.

    By: Fantastic Plants

    Flowers violet, fragrant in May before heart shaped leaves appear. Deciduous zones 6-9.

    By: Lael's Moon Garden

    This tree grows very fast up to 50' in height with nearly equal spread. When young, or if trimmed back annually, it will grow billowy foliage, with individual leaves up to 2' across. The flowers appear from brown buds which open to become stunning 6-8" tall spikes of trumpet-shaped blossoms. The vanilla scented flowers are lilac-blue with darker spotting and yellow stripes inside. Very beautiful and unusual, this tree always gains attention!

    By: Greer Gardens Inc.

    Fast growing deciduous tree with huge leaves. The well-known Empress Tree can be grown as a large tree for its lavender pseudo-tropical trumpets in the spring, or as a pollarded plant for its huge leaves. But did you know it can also grow enormous from a tiny seed in its first year? Lilac flowers spring. -25 °F.

    By: The Desert Northwest

    Looking like a tree from the pages of a Chinese fairy tale, the rare, easy & amazingly fast growing Empress tree stopped me in my tracks one Spring day at U.C. Botanical Garden. Large, fragrant, lavender-blue, foxglove-like flowers are borne in upright terminal clusters on this large, spreading tree before leaves emerge, presenting a picture of unreal beauty. Later, large apple-green, fuzzy, heart-shaped leaves appear, giving a tropical look. “Empress Tree” thrives in the Bay Area. Grows 10’ the first year & up to 40’. Happily - if you don’t want a huge tree - YOU CAN KEEP IT PRUNED SHORT AS A SHRUB - where you can enjoy its fabulous blooms & huge, very tropical leaves. VERY FROST HARDY! Fertile soil is best.

    By: Annie's Annuals & Perennials

    Humongous leaves on youthful plants and large sprays of tubular purple flowers on older trees to 40' tall. We coppice ours to the ground to produce large foliage.

    By: Dancing Oaks Nursery

    Gardening facts about Paulownia tomentosa plant

    How to Grow Paulownia tomentosa

    • Sun Exposure

      • sun - mostly sun

    • Water Needs

      • regular - drought tolerant

    • Soil Needs

      • adaptable
      • average
      • well-drained
      • rich

    • Special Situation

      • heat tolerant
      • humidity tolerant

    Features

    • Foliage Color

      • green

    • Flower Color

      • blue
      • purple

    • Wildlife

      • bees
      • butterflies
      • hummingbirds

    • Flower Season

      • spring

    • Foliage Season

      • deciduous

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