{"slug":"paulownia-tomentosa","scientific_name":"Paulownia tomentosa","common_names":["Princess tree","Empress tree","Royal paulownia","Foxglove tree"],"family":"Paulowniaceae","type":"broadleaf_deciduous","mature_height_m":13,"mature_spread_m":8,"growth_rate":"fast","lifespan_years":70,"hardiness_zones":[5,9],"sun":"full_partial","water":"medium","soil":"Tolerates clay, sand, rocky and infertile soil at any pH; prefers deep, moist, well-drained sandy loam","native_range":"Native to central and eastern China.","description":"An extremely fast tree with huge velvety heart-shaped leaves, showy upright clusters of fragrant violet foxglove-like flowers before the leaves in spring, and woody capsules that release thousands of tiny winged seeds. It is sold as a shade or 'miracle' timber tree and can grow 15 ft in a year, but the wood is weak, flower buds freeze, it is messy, and it colonizes roadcuts, stream banks and burned ground across the eastern US. Wisconsin prohibits it, Connecticut bans its sale, and Pennsylvania and Virginia list it as invasive.","care":"Not recommended for planting. Removal: cutting alone fails because it sends up root sprouts many feet from the stump; cut and treat stumps or girdle and treat. Remove seedlings before they set seed capsules.","benefits":["flowers","fast_canopy","pollinators"],"uses":["timber"],"cautions":["invasive_elsewhere","weak_wood","heavy_litter"],"image_url":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/74/Paulownia_tomentosa_JPG2a.jpg","image_credit":"Jean-Pol GRANDMONT, CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons","sources":["https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/paulownia-tomentosa/","https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PATO2","https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paulownia_tomentosa","https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/Invasives/RegulatedSpecies","https://cipwg.uconn.edu/invasive_plant_list/","https://www.pa.gov/en/agencies/dcnr/conservation/wild-plants/invasive-plants/invasive-plant-fact-sheets.html","https://www.dcr.virginia.gov/natural-heritage/document/nh-invasive-plant-list-2024.pdf","https://www.fs.usda.gov/database/feis/plants/tree/pautom/all.html"],"data_note":null,"updated_at":"2026-11-08T01:00:46.205Z","page_url":"https://treerm.org/trees/paulownia-tomentosa","markdown_url":"https://treerm.org/trees/paulownia-tomentosa.md","regions":[{"country":"CN","region":null,"locality":null,"status":"native","note":"Native to central and eastern China.","source_url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paulownia_tomentosa"},{"country":"US","region":null,"locality":null,"status":"invasive","note":"Naturalized in at least 25 eastern states; listed invasive in North Carolina and by the USDA National Invasive Species Information Center.","source_url":"https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/paulownia-tomentosa/"},{"country":"US","region":"PA","locality":null,"status":"invasive","note":"On Pennsylvania DCNR's invasive plant fact sheet list.","source_url":"https://www.pa.gov/en/agencies/dcnr/conservation/wild-plants/invasive-plants/invasive-plant-fact-sheets.html"},{"country":"US","region":"VA","locality":null,"status":"invasive","note":"Virginia DCR Invasive Plant Species List, Medium invasiveness rank.","source_url":"https://www.dcr.virginia.gov/natural-heritage/document/nh-invasive-plant-list-2024.pdf"},{"country":"US","region":"CT","locality":null,"status":"prohibited","note":"Potentially Invasive on the Connecticut Invasive Plant List; sale and movement prohibited by statute.","source_url":"https://cipwg.uconn.edu/invasive_plant_list/"},{"country":"US","region":"WI","locality":null,"status":"prohibited","note":"Prohibited under Wisconsin NR 40: possession, transport and introduction banned and control required.","source_url":"https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/Invasives/RegulatedSpecies"}],"license":"CC-BY-4.0"}