Empress Tree, Dragon Tree (Paulownia kawakamii)

Empress Tree, Dragon Tree
Paulownia kawakamii

This tree is only 3 years old and was started from a 6 inch sapling.

Where did you originally get this tree? I see so many different looking pictures, it's hard to believe they are all Palowina tree.... some are ugly and some are lovely (like yours). Some have huge ugly dinner plate size leaves and some have more normal heart shape leaves (like yours)... I want one like yours!

I woud be happy to send you a seedling when the next one pops up. My tree came from a nursery in California. This year would have been its best yet but we had a golf ball size hail storm that stripped off most of the buds. When I have a seeding I will post to this thread or send you an e-mail.

sandraking

the leaves are BIG.but I heard the older the tree gets the smaller the leaves become....
I got mine last year and it was 1" TALL...Thats INCH! ~ And now its over 15 feet tall...not bad for 38 miles from the WINDY CITY Zone 5 B...and its in the GROUND, not a POT..

Leaves..next to my 90 lb. Boxer.and MOST are BIGGER / Wider then that...

I'm seriously confused about this tree as well. I only recently started searching for a fast growning tree for some shade at my new home and this seemed like a great idea at first but, I'm scared to get it now hearing all the negative comments. I live in FL where supposedly they will grow and spread like wildfire? I dont mind the ugliness for the first year or so if thats what it takes to end up with a nice looking tree in a short 2-3 year time frame. So, the tree in this picture up top, how tall is it? That doesn't look as big as the claims for 3 years growth from these babies.. are you pruning the hell out of it possibly??? And whats the deal with the leaf size on yours???

This message was edited Jul 4, 2007 3:15 PM

well my tree is now 2 1/2 years old and has NEVER FLOWERED....
(It keeps getting taller and the leaves are getting smaller each year as they said it would)
.....
How many years does it take till this flowers?
and approx what MONTH does it flower in Illinois?

Don't know about Illinois, but my tree grew to about 40' tall before it flowered (that was 4 years after planting it, when it was 1' tall). Fast tree alright, but weak wood (one branch alread crashed to the ground).

Oh, OK.........Thats Good to know. At least theres still hope my tree will still flower. (Maybe next spring)
Did your get BUDS in the fall and then flower in the Spring time?
Do you have pictures of yours in full bloom? (It would be nice to see)