Empress Tree

Did you know

• Named after Princess Anna Pavlovna of Russia, who married the Dutch King William II in 1816—it became fashionable as a 'royal' tree across European estates.
• In Japan, paulownia (kiri) is a sacred tree—a paulownia is traditionally planted at the birth of a daughter, then cut down to make her wedding chest when she marries.
• The empress tree is one of the fastest-growing trees on Earth—a seedling can grow 15 feet in its first year, and mature trees can put on 8 feet of new growth annually.
• The flowers bloom on bare branches before the leaves emerge, covering the entire crown in purple foxglove-like trumpets that perfume the spring air with vanilla-and-almond.
• Paulownia wood is the lightest hardwood in commercial use—it's the wood traditionally used for Japanese koto musical instruments and emergency life rafts.

Color meanings

Uses

• Shade tree
• Specimen tree
• Timber
• Avenue planting