Franklinia picture

Here's something you don't often see, a plant in bloom and in fall color at the same time. The Franklinia at Dawes arboretum are pretty nice specimens, btw.

Scott

There's that signature Decumbent white subject matter photography again. Beautiful photo.

EQualification, if I were you, I would take my camera to a really good camera shop along with your manual and see if there is some setting or something wrong with your camera. It seems that improper "white balancing" is something they should be able to correct.

The thing I love about that picture is the depth of burgundy in those leaves! It is so rich. It would be enough if Franklinia just had its interesting history, but to have that and to be so beautiful in so many ways and in every season is an embarrassment of riches!

Scott

I downloaded a user's guide a while ago for the new camera that isn't so new any more. I am struggling with it. I keep reverting back to my old standby camera. It's not the quality of what you shoot with and I did take it in once.

Your Franklinia is outstanding as a whole. Leaves and all but I am particularly attracted to the stark white bloom.

Decumbent,
My Franklinia is in bloom for the first time and although the tree is young 5-6' my leaves are a mixture of red/yellow I would love it if I could look forward to burgundy leaves as it matures but I don't think that is likely. How old was the tree at Dawes arboretum? kt

Scott, what appropriate timing and beautiful picture! We just purchased a Franklinia this weekend and can't wait to find the perfect spot for it in the small 'arboretum' we're creating.

Debbie

I believe the Dawes trees were planted in the 1950s. Here is a picture of the trunk of the largest in the colony.

Scott

Scott,
Thanks for the photo is the Franklinia like Stewartia pseudocamellia that it grows both single and multi trunked??? My blosom is the same but the leaf color and trunk (mine is single) is different. Wow 1950's I wonder why it took so long for such a beautiful tree with a unique bloom time to find it's way back to commerce? kt

KT,

...and it is a real pain to grow. Success with the species is not a given. Yoiu might be well enough located to see one of the oldest, largest specimens of Franklinia in existence. The Arnold has got one--that I am told-- is massive. Great lateral limbs that sag to the ground and root, thus forming a very wide, dense colony of Franklinia. My understanding is that most grow like the one at the Arnold and like the one pictured at Dawes, but mine too is a single stem version. I think that if they are left alone and live long enough, that yours and mine will also spread out and possible go multi-limbed.

Scott

Scott,
Thanks I have spent the last twenty six years living a rather isolated life but that does not mean Arnold hasn't been a frequent place to take classes as well spend an afternoon. Arnold took over the care of my local arboretum "Polly Hill" a few short years ago and is doing an amazing job. If you have yet to hear about Polly Hill considering your zone/ location you might want to take a look. She is a very cool 96 year old woman who you might read about in many texts the most recent that I picked up "Legends in the Garden Who in The World is Nellie Stevens?". My next trip to Arnold I will be certain to share with you a photo of the "Franklinia" as well as anything else you might be interested in. My specimen is in full sun, highly acidic sandy soil in a location protected from high winds...fingers crossed. Thanks kt

KT,

From all I've read, your site sounds ideal for Franklinia. I consistently hear that it does best in the Northeast also.

I must confess that I do not know much about Polly Hill. I have seen and heard the name so many times in cultivar names and quick assides that this or that came from Polly Hill, but I have never seen a definitive article about her. The book you mentioned is high up on my Christmas List!

Scott

I had never heard of the Franklinia until my mom and I attended Garden Fair at Winterthur, DE two weeks ago. One of the nurseries there was giving away Franklinia seedlings. I've got mine planted (and registered!) and am hoping it's favorable to it and that it survives the winter here. What a great provenance these trees have!

I finally got a decent white photograph-

Oh goodness, you had me so confused! I thought, "That is NOT a Franklinia bloom!" LOLOLOL. I get it now. White picture with your camera.

Datura, common old Datura but I finally did get a so so photo. I am so proud of myself.

Yeah, I knew that's what it was. It's pretty, though! You should be proud! :-)

Another one I just recently took-

And another one-

Hi Scott. I love your Franklinia pictures and have a small one myself that I am trying to get established -- the question is, exactly where? I bought it at Styers in PA when I was out there once, moved it from my old to my new garden. It has never thrived, is late to leaf out in the spring and mostly from adventitial buds, so I think there has been some bud dieback every year (even though we didn't go below zero last winter). I have it out in the woods in fairly dense shade, good dampish soil. But I suspect it wants more sun -- the plants I have seen around Philly all seemed to be in sun or at most part shade.

So exactly what kind of growing conditions does Franklinia want? How much sun/shade/moistures/what soil, etc? I would love to get this to thrive somewhere in the garden.

Thanks, David

While I'm not Scott, I'll share my experience in what Franklinia wants. It wants perfect drainage, acidic sandy highly organicly enriched soil, that never dries out!, and full sun until about mid day, then light to moderate shade. Other than that, it's quite easy to grow. he he

When I was considering planting this tree four or five years ago, I posted a question regarding Franklinia culture on GW. Most of the responders were from the East Coast, but among those who claimed to successfully grow Franklinia the advice was unanimous: plant it in ordinary soil and leave it alone.

Seemed easy enough, and it is exactly what I have done. Mine is in a raised bed composed of clay soil which is thinly mulched. This summer was hot and dry, and I only irrigated that area two or three times. While i've only had the tree three years, and growth has been slow, it has not croaked.

I have heard the argument that Franklinias cannot dry out, but I also know that root rots are probably what kill Franklinias the most. So I determined to refrain from watering until I saw signs of stress. I never did see any signs of drought stress, despite intense drought. But other plants in the bed did begin to suffer, so I finally relented and did some watering, but no more than absolutely necessary. Again, so far so good.

I think your acidic, sandy soil, cooler temps, cooler night temps, and (possibly?) more consistent rainfall might be a little more like East Coast conditions than here, so you might enjoy success. It is supposedly not a hard tree to grow in New England, more difficult in the Midwest, and impossible in the South.

Scott

I have been mainly concerned about the hardiness issue with Franklinias, but maybe I don't need to be so as much. I definitely have acidic sandy soil which can be amended to no end with organics. Perfect drainage is no problem in most of my garden. And the temps are definitely cooloer here in the growing season than in Cincinatti, or in Philly for that matter, where summers in my experience are very hot -- and where there are plenty of beautiful Franklinias. We have less rain than the east coast, more like 32" a year compared with 40", but I doubt it is too different from Cincinatti.

I suspect that the problem with my plant is just that it has been moved too much. 3 times in about 5 years -- no tree would have time to 'put down roots' and get established.

david5311,
3 times in 5 years! Could I have finally found someone else with my same addiction for transplanting? I keep a shovel sharpened at all times and no plant regardless of age or size is safe from my impulsive decision that it would be much happier under different conditions. I have to say I have often pondered with the vast variety of book titles out there these days that I have yet to come across on based solely on transplant success and failure rates, techniques, and of course back pain medication recommendations. kt

Well runktrun, part of the problem is that I moved......and with it, a not insignificant part of my garden, including about 40 trees and shrubs with root balls varying in size up to about 40" I had a crew with a flatbed trailer and it looked like a whole nursery had been moved out of my old garden. The amazing thing is that, even with that number of plants removed, the old place did not look 'empty' at all. I know how to pack 'em in.

But yes, I am also a plant mover, and I too don't consider any plant exempt! I must admit that, as I have gotten older and wiser, I don't do it as much. I have figured out what plants want in advance, more than I used to. And I just don't have the energy for it either. I think the witchhazel Jelena in my current garden, now about 7' tall and 10' across, was moved about 6 or 7 times over the course of nearly 20 years, since I got it as a little 30" plant. It is growing in too much shade where it is now. But it still seems to be thriving, may bloom a little less than in more sun.

But it ain't movin' nowhere...

Moved 40 tree's and shrubs! You solved the retirement quandary for most gardeners it's fine to relocate away from friends and family but leave your landscape.....never! It must have been a big project would you do it all over again if given the choice? Now as to that sweet little witch hazel 'Jelena' you might be able to fool others but you can't pull the wool over a fellow addicts eyes. I can almost read your thoughts...First invite tree & shrub forum members over to look at your wonderful specimens...Second make sure to have spare shovels sharpened...third casually express desire and cunningly enlist sympathy...and wahla 'Jelena' is basking in full sun. kt

Scott, when saying where the tree will grow, you said never in the south. I had one when we lived just north of Chattanooga TN, and got it at a native plant sale (south of Chattanooga going towards Lookout Mountain) at a wonderful arboretum, where they dig up "extras" each year for this sale. They also start a variety from seed and cuttings. Anyway, we only lived there for 17 months and I got a Franklinia shortly after moving there. It did great. In 6 months, it grew from about a foot to about 4 ft. I had it in full sun, amended clay soil. So anyway, they do grow in that part of the south anyway.