Halesia tetraptera is a tree with prolific mid-spring white bell-shaped pendulous flowers that is best-sited in semi-shady locations with moist, rich soils.
|
F E A T U R E S |
| |
Form
-medium-sized ornamental tree
-maturing at about 30' tall x 20' wide under urban conditions, but up to 60' tall in the wild
-upright irregular growth habit (either single-trunked and low-branched, or multi-trunked, with ascending branches forming an irregular canopy that is highly variable from one tree to the next)
-medium growth rate |
Foliage
-medium green, alternate, ovate to elliptical, and serrulate
-autumn color is yellowish green to yellow-brown, and not at all ornamentally effective |
Flowers
-white, in late Apr. or early May, as pendulous bell-shaped clusters of flowers on short pedicels from the previous year's wood, with each flower consisting of 4 fused petals, with the flowers persistent for about a week
-very attractive when viewed from a short distance, but best viewed by looking up into the canopy or at eye-level to achieve the maximum ornamental effect, since they are pendulous, emerge with the foliage, and are therefore slightly hidden |
Fruit
-lime green, distinctly four-winged, changing to brown, and usually abscising in autumn, but with a few fruits persistent into the following spring |
Twig
-tan and pubescent at the end of the first growing season, becoming darker brown then gray in the second year, developing stringy exfoliating filaments on the second- and third-year wood
-young branches remain smooth and brown-gray, with prominent darker striations |
|
Trunk
-older branches and young trunks become furrowed, flat-ridged, and blocky, while mature trunks are more deeply fissured and dark gray, sometimes mottled with a lighter brown coloration |
|
C U L T
U R E
|
| |
Culture
-full sun to partial shade
-prefers partial sun to partial shade in moist, acidic, well-drained, organically-enriched soils; it is not urban tolerant, especially to heat, drought, and poor soils, and may develop chlorotic foliage when placed in alkaline pH soils
-propagated by rooted stem cuttings or by seeds
-no serious diseases or pests
-moderately available, primarily in B&B form |
Hardiness
-zones 4 to 8
Origin
-native to the Eastern U.S. where it exists at the edges of woodlands
|
|
U S A G E |
| |
Assets
-white bell-shaped flowers in spring
-striated to furrowed gray-brown bark
-lime-green, four-sided fruits in late summer
-shade tolerant
Liabilities
-irregular and somewhat unpredictable in growth habit, although generally upright
-poor autumn color |
Function
-specimen tree for the border, woodland edge, understory, or even foundation site, as long as the proper soil, moisture, and drainage conditions are met
-well-suited as an accent tree near decks, patios
Texture
-medium texture in foliage and when bare
-average density in foliage and when bare |
|
S E L
E C T I 0 N S |
| |
Varieties
and Cultivars
- Search
OSU PlantFacts for additional plants in this species
Alternates
-mid-spring flowering trees (Cornus florida, Crataegus viridis 'Winter King', Malus, etc.)
-small- to medium-sized trees with subtle stem/branch/bark ornamental character (Amelanchier laevis, Cornus florida, Crataegus viridis 'Winter King', etc.)
-native understory ornamental trees or large shrubs (Aesculus glabra, Amelanchier canadensis, Carpinus caroliniana, Cercis canadensis, Ostrya virginiana, Viburnum prunifolium, etc.)
-trees with oddly-shaped fruits (Asimina triloba, Carpinus betulus, Koelreuteria paniculata, Ostrya virginiana, Staphylea trifolia, etc.) |