top

Royal Paulownia or Princess Tree

Paulownia tomentosa

Identification

Paulownia or princess tree is a medium to large deciduous tree. It has large, oval to heart shaped leaves that are opposite or whorled in arrangement. The thick-fleshed leaves are covered with very small, stiff hairs, giving them a velvety appearance and feel. The saplings of this species have very large leaves, and this species is easily identified when young. The flowers appearing in spring are clusters of showy purple blossoms located at the tips of the branches. The fruit is a dry capsule which splits at maturity to release thousands of tiny winged seeds, then persists on the tree over the winter.  

Origin

China

Habitat

Paulownia is a tree found in rocky, poor soil, burned over areas, construction zones, and any other open area, especially with disturbed soil. Its extremely tiny seeds give it the ability to colonize and invade areas of almost solid rock like road cuts and exposed rock outcrops. It tolerates infertile, acid soils and drought conditions well, but is not shade tolerant. Has extraordinary epicormic branching ability, and can start over from a small root fragment after being damaged. It has a very fast growth rate, being able to grow 15 feet a year in favorable conditions.

Ecological Threat

Paulownia is a very fast-growing and rapidly spreading tree. It can colonize areas with almost no soil, and grow out of cracks in rock faces, speeding up erosion in road cuts and natural rock outcrops. It has no wildlife food or cover value, and competes with native tree and shrub species that do produce valuable food for wildlife. Paulownia is so highly prolific, it is estimated that a single mature tree can produce twenty million seeds annually. These huge crops of very tiny seeds are spread far and wide by wind and water. Paulownia is very hard to control once established. Paulownia is unfortunately still sold and widely planted for its aesthetic effect and promoted because of its fast growth rate.

Recommended Native Alternatives

• Eastern redbud (Cercis canadensis)

• Downy serviceberry (Amelanchier arborea)

• Sourwood (Oxydendrum arboreum)

These pages are designed to give the layperson a general overview of non-native invasive plants commonly found in the upper Hiwassee River watershed. For more comprehensive and technical information about a particular species, visit one of the web sites from our Links page.