Liriodendron chinense & Liriodendron tulipifera

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escambiaguy Atmore, AL(Zone 8b) Apr 30, 2006

Does anybody know the best way to distinguish one from another? I also read a website that stated the Chinese version was a superior tree. What would make it more superior?

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growin Beautiful, BC(Zone 8b) Apr 30, 2006

The Chinese Liriodendron has smaller leaves. It's not as fast growing and keeps smaller. I used to have one but left it in the yard of house I was renting. I think they mean superior because of it's more manageable size for residential.

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ViburnumValley Scott County, KY(Zone 5b) Apr 30, 2006

Growin's experience must reflect the west coast conditions. E-guy needs some southeast US information; maybe Dirr's could be useful.

Quoting:
Chinese Tuliptree, although listed in most references as smaller in habit (50'), the plants I have observed were terrifically fast-growing, and trees over 80' high are recorded. One plant in our evaluation tests grew 25' high and 15' wide in seven years from a 3.2' high seedling. The leaves are larger and more deeply cut (sinused) above the lower lobes, i.e., akin to a narrow waist. The rich green leaves turn brilliant yellow in Georgia.


You ought to post the website that gives contrarian information. I can only suspect L. chinense might be considered superior for your Gulf Coast zone 8 conditions versus L. tulipifera which probably does better where it gets a good longer chilling winter.

Chinese Tuliptree is quite borderline up here in the frozen wasteland of KY, though I see people planting them occasionally. It's blatant torture, but gardeners will be gardeners. Our native tuliptree is probably happier from your area northward, or at least in higher elevations.

It might be cool to acquire both plants as seedlings, and plant them in similar circumstances, and then see which one wins the race to 25'.

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Resin Northumberland, United Kingdom(Zone 9a) Apr 30, 2006

The only reliable distinction is the flowers - L. tulipifera has an orange patch on the petals, L. chinense has flowers all greenish-yellow without an orange patch.

The leaves of L. chinense tend to be more deeply cut, but there's A LOT of overlap; ditto in size.

Resin

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escambiaguy Atmore, AL(Zone 8b) Apr 30, 2006

Just from looking at the pictures I cannot tell them apart. Being that Liriodendron is a prolific reseeder, I just wonder if we might have then growing in our woodlands and not realize it. Here is the website that sais it was superior : http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/plants/trees/tuliptree.html . I never plant non-native trees unless I know they can't escape cultivation. I wouldn't trust this one. I just wondered what the difference was.

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ViburnumValley Scott County, KY(Zone 5b) Apr 30, 2006

E-guy shows what hazards can derive from online information without discriminating by source.

At Kew, the opinion is that the Chinese Tuliptree is superior to the American Tuliptree. That doesn't necessarily apply everywhere the two trees can be grown, and isn't meant to be taken as such. It sure wouldn't apply in KY.

Good advice on not planting without awareness of invasiveness. Think globally and act locally has more than one application.

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