I cut mine down last year as I learned that it is an invasive in our area. If you want to see a whole bunch of them, go out to Finch Nursery in Bailey, NC. Their Bluebird house division has planted a bunch to use as wood for the bluebird boxes.

http://www.danfinch.com/birds.htm

Paulownia seeds in like crazy and tends to lose limbs. There are far better trees out there.

Pawlonia is an extremely fast growing tree with very large leaves, particularly when young. They are not native and can be invasive along highways. The flowers are showy in spring -- large multiple clusters of lavender florets that look like snapdragons. I wouldn't plant one unless you have lots of space for it to grow and plenty of sun. Personally, it's not one of my favorites but my opinions are somewhat affected by its invasive nature and habit of growing along railroad lines and other disturbed areas.

I would say that this plant is considered a pest almost anywhere. Michigan Bulb has a somewhat disreputable repuation, according to feedback from Garden Watchdog, so I am totally not surprised that they are pushing this plant.

Here is a link that might be useful: Paulownia tomentosa

Thanks everyone for your input on this. I think I am going to pass on it. I knew that there would be someone out there that would know womething about it.

They weren't "pushing" this plant. I saw it and who can pass on something that is a fast grower and has flowers that looked like that. Usually I pick things that either grow really slow or not at all. I guess I am making progress with the plants I choose. I do have a good bit of space, but are looking for something a little less problematic. I half thought about a couple varieties of apples or pears, but I don't want the deer any closer to the house then they need to be. My dogs are convinced that they are there to play with them. I live out in the country and have a couple neighbors down the road with those street lights that I am looking to block out. I have a couple maple trees on that side that are starting to grow well, but wanted to suppliment them with something else.

Forsythia makes a beautiful screen and does it grow fast and fill in thickly. I planted yellow Forsythia, red-orange Flowering Quince, and Bridle's Wreath Spirea in one section of the southwestern fence along the driveway (for the same reason as yours), and planted old-fashioned Garden Phlox in front of the bushes and old-time yellow Jonquils in front of the phlox. Really pretty in Spring and effective without looking like a screen.

You could plant any kind of flowering bushes, mixing plants & small flowering trees with various textures and colors. Flowering shrubs grow quickly. I started mine from cuttings and in just two years they are huge things. The Forsythia is over ten feet tall with a spread of nearly the same footage.

I added a Buddlea last year for a slightly different purple color and texture. The good thing about shrubs is that they are there all year round. (wink)

Maybe something like this would be to your liking.

SweetAnnie4u

It's my favorite tree! I had a mature one in my yard many years ago. No seedlings at all. You can get specimens that are less invasive. Americana is one. The fragrance is unbelievable.

i can not believe michigan bulb company is still in business. i fell for their sunday paper color ad about 30 years ago ... the "plants" i received were a joke.

Last year was the second time I bought from Mich Bulb. I got some really good plants. Their prices were good, so I thought I would take a chance again. I won't ever buy tomato plants from them again, but everything else grew really well.

My scarlet bee balm grew really well, as did the butterfly bushes. I only had one thing that didn't grow well, and it was probably my fault because of where I put it. In 30 years they have probably changed a thing or two.

Wax myrtle is a nice screening shrub/small tree. Not sure how big a tree you need to block out your neighbors' lights.

Also, I love to grow loblolly pine as a fast screening plant. When you are ready to do something else, they are easy to cut down and never sprout back. You can usually get loblolly pines from the forestry service (we can in Georgia) and they are real cheap.

I love my Paulownia trees. I planted 2 last year in the middle of a sweltering hot dry July. One got to 9 feet (started out at 6 inches!). The other is lagging behind at around 4 feet because I had to dig it up and move it in August but it lived. They don't have to be weak, hollow trees. If you cut them down to the ground in Spring they grow up twice as tall and stronger the following summer.

Paulownia has gotten a bad rap for being invasive. The roots are not invasive at all. The reputation comes from the millions of seeds they produce once they flower in 3-4 years. However, Paulownia is a pioneer species, one that needs bare soil, adequate moisture and direct sunlight for germination. It will not take over native species, especially already wooded areas because it needs to be completely isolated to grow. When you plant one you can't even let weeds get up too tall around it. It will not reproduce in a forest of other trees. If a seedling does happen to sprout up in our lawn you pull it out.

Paulownia are not invasive. Many people have them (by the way there is an entire area devoted to them in Central Park, NYC) If they were so invasive they would be everywhere, like the hideous poison Sumac in my backyard.

Here is a link that might be useful: Central Park Paulownia

There is a whole field of Paulownia in a field near Howell Woods in Johnston County that would seem to run counter to the above statement. It's true they haven't taken over the world, but they do seed in prodigiously. And who wants a tree you have to cut down every year?

sorry, but they are in fact invasive. they are all over the place in the mountains near gauly gap in wva. if you stop at the gauley bridge welcome center thingy, there's a whole story on how they go there and are a problem. it's in full forest, so obviously they can compete with natives successfully.

Not invasive???? HA! I'd love to give you a 30+ footer I have close to my house. It's lifting the sidewalk horribly (about 15 feet away). I've cut down, ground up, used brush killer, and burned 5 others on my property. That was almost two years ago and they STILL send up many plants from the roots. Also, anything that grows 8-10 feet a year has very weak wood. STAY AWAY FROM THIS PEST!

We'd best all learn to like it. It seems that it's faster growing and better suited for plantations than any of the natives used for hardwood pulp. There are more and more fields of it around.
Wm

well - I cut my stray one down last year - it seeded in from somewhere - I kinda like the big velvety leaves and thought it was unique - but what a pest a couple of years later but that is JMO. I would plant some crape myrtles or wax myrtles. There are definetely better choices of trees out there....

Lynne

I've heard the stories about the Paulownia being a terribly invasive pest.
That's not been my experience.
I have one 3 years old - an "Americana".
It is indeed a VERY fast growing tree - 35 feet in 3 years.
But it has been absolutely no problem.
It hasn't been invasive at all (unlike the Sumac I inherited from the previous owner).
The Paulownia sits there anchoring the end of one of my gardens and looks beautiful.
I really enjoy mine.

The only reason I can come up with for my much more positive experience than other folks is my climate.
We have very tuff winters here.
Temperatures frequently in single digits sometimes sub-zero.
LOTS & LOTS of snow - many feet each season.
I'm thinking that might be the reason the tree stays in check for me.
It would seem the warmer climates would give it the opportunity to run wild.
Just a theory on my part - no proof.

Here's a picture of mine...

{{gwi:254478}}

If you're interested here's a link to the folks I bought mine from - very reputable:
http://www.PAULOWNIATREES.com/

Keith

keith- just watch for those nuts it forms and don't let it seed around. as i posted above, it does really well in the mountains of west virginia and their conditions are fairly similar to ohio's. i'm from western pa, so i know what you're talking about. people aren't complaining about it suckering like sumac- it's those nuts that seed everywhere. and because the growth rate is so phenomenal, it can happen fast.

Excellant point...
Thanks for the suggestion.
I'll keep my eyes peeled for them.

According to the list published in the back of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden's "Native Alternatives to Invasive Plants", 2006 edition, Paulonia tomentosa is listed as invasive in CT, DC, GA, KY, LA, MD, NC, NJ, OR, PA, TN, VA and WV. The list is drawn from the WeedUS: Database of Plants invading Natural Areas in the USA, and printed with permission of the Plant Conservation Alliance. In the last several years, more states may have listed it as invasive. They suggest, as an alternative, that catalpas or Kentucky coffee trees be planted instead.

I don't necessarily say that such a listing is definitive, but will say that since the tree is listed as widely as it is, I rather think it poses a problem. While the 'Americana' cultivar may in fact not be invasive, I would want to see more documentation than that of the developer - sometimes what is perceived is what is most favorable.

Keith, 3 years is not enough time to say for sure that a tree is or isn't invasive - mostly it takes longer than that for seeds to be spread around and the true nature of a plant to show up. That it IS listed in CT would seem to say that cold climates aren't a check on it.

By the way, sometimes what people refer to as "sumac" is actually another terribly invasive pest: Tree of Heaven or "Stinking Sumac". It is a tree and the scientific name is Ailanthus altissima. It's a plant that folks in the Eastern U.S. should familiarize themselves with so that they can eliminate it quickly should it sprout in their yard.

Sumacs, such as Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina is the scientific name) are often more shrub form plants although sometimes classified as a small tree.

Here is a link that might be useful: Ailanthus altissima

with all the varieties of paulownia, isn't the weak wood, surface roots, and 'invasiveness' a function of the variety?
they are all different...

i had sum invasive albizias
volunteers
grew 30' in 2 years
but i dug em up with a shovel in 2 minutes
invasive... ?

a stunningly pretty blue tree is jackaranda
cheap around here
equally stunning is the pink tabebuia
not cheap
check the pic of the ones at los angeles arboretum on google

dirtdog, perhaps you don't understand the different types of "invasiveness". A plant can be invasive in the following ways:

- It spreads aggressively underground (sometimes called suckering), increasing the size of the plant from side to side. In some cases, the runners can travel underground for many feet before popping up: bamboo, wisteria, japanese honeysuckle, and tree of heaven are examples of some plants that spread this way.

- It spreads by dispersal of seed. Seed can be dispersed by wind, water (streambanks), and animals/birds. In this case, appearance of invasiveness is not always apparent to the person with the original plant as the seeds can travel long distances. Mimosa, paulownia, honeysuckles, tree of heaven (yep, spreads two ways), chinaberry and many others spread this way. Yes, it may be easy to dig up the original plant, but the seeds have spread.

As far as paulownia's invasiveness being a function of variety, I don't think enough studies have been done to confirm that.

Paulownia aside, jacaranda and tabebuia are not hardy outside of zone 9, and even in that zone it can be a crapshoot to grow one. So checking out pics will be for aesthetics's sake only...we can't grow them in the Carolinas.

And for God's sake don't grow paulownia or albizia either!!

Paulonia's invasive. So is privet. "Agressive" means a pest in your garden, tendency of taking over. "Invasive" means into our natural areas, displacing natives. I won't become a terrorist to save a whale, and I don't prefer organic milk, tofu, or natural fiber clothing. But if I see a privet or a paulonia in a misguided gardener's yard, expect me back with some round-up concentrate after the sun sets. That's just how I roll.

Ninja Gardening!

Love it!! been sooo tempted to do at my neighbor's....

I love my Paulownia tree. It's 5 years old, started form a 4" start ordered from an ad in my local newspaper. It's nearly 30' tall and 20' wide now. In beautiful bloom at present, if the link to the pic I just took will work. Just joined here and not familiar with posting pics yet.

Here is a link that might be useful: