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Dragontree

Paulownia fortunei

Also called Foxglove Tree

Dragontree
Photo: Fanghong, CC BY-SA 4.0

Paulownia fortunei is a fast-growing deciduous tree from southern China and Vietnam, grown for timber and as an ornamental in parks and gardens. It needs a large space and full sun, since it grows very quickly.

Family
Paulowniaceae (Paulowni family)
Grows as
Tree
Light
Full sun
Water
Water deeply during dry spells while young; established trees tolerate normal rainfall.
Soil
Well-drained, fertile soil; tolerates a range of soil types.
Temperature
Hardy in temperate climates; young growth can be damaged by late frost.
How easy
Easy
Native range
S. China to N. Indo-China, Taiwan
Climate
temperate

About

Paulownia fortunei commonly called the dragontree, dragon tree or Fortune's empress tree, is a deciduous tree in the family Paulowniaceae, native to southeastern China (including Taiwan), Laos and Vietnam. It is an extremely fast-growing tree, and is planted for timber harvesting. It appears to be nowhere near as dangerously invasive as Paulownia tomentosa.

Uses

Aside from its use as a cheap timber tree, it is being studied for use in phytoremediation and carbon sequestration. P. fortunei is cultivated as an ornamental tree in parks and gardens. Its cultivar Fast Blue='Minfast' has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

Other Paulownia plants

Paulownia catalpifolia · Paulownia elongata · Sapphire dragon tree · Princesstree · Paulownia

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Paulownia fortunei by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.

The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.

Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.

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