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FRINGE TREE AT A GLANCE

COMMON NAME: Fringe tree, old-man's-beard or flowering ash

SPECIES: Chionanthus (ki-o-nan'thus) virginicus (vir-gin'i-cus). In Greek, the name means ``snow and flower'' and ``from Virginia.'' The genus Chionanthus is a member of the olive family.

FORM: Large shrub or small tree with somewhat stiff, spreading branches with open form. Round-topped, usually taller than wide. The trunk, which can reach 8-10 inches in diameter, is short with branches forming close to the ground.

SIZE: 10-12 feet tall; 8-10 feet wide. Spread can exceed height. Slow grower.

LEAVES: Foliage late to leaf out in spring. Leaves are dark green on upper surface and paler and somewhat hairy beneath. Leaves are 4-8 inches long with pointed tips. Leaf margins often wavy, without teeth. In fall, leaves turn a yellowish color but can vary from greenish to brown, to a good yellow.

FLOWERS: Showy, long clusters, 4-8 inches, of delicate spring flowers that are white and fringe-like. Flowers on previous year's wood.

FRUITS: Ripen in late summer or early fall. Dark blue to nearly black, egg-shaped fruits marked by a white, powdery bloom and contain a single seed. Fruits attractive to wildlife, including birds, whitetail deer, quail and turkey. Male plants must be near females for abundant fruit.

EXPOSURE: Sun.

VARIETIES: Choose nursery-propagated trees, not ones collected from the wild. Check with local garden centers or send a self-addressed, stamped envelope for retail sources to: Virginia Native Plant Society, P.O. Box 844, Annandale, Va. 22003.

CULTURE: Needs medium moisture and medium drainage; medium fertility in sandy loam.

PRUNE: Thin occasionally to stimulate new growth.

PROBLEMS: None. Good in cities; tolerates smoke and dust.

RELATED SPECIES: Chionanthus retusus, native to China. Purple fringe tree is common name for Cotinus Coggygria, also known as the smoke tree.

Sources: Virginia Native Plant Society and ``Landscape Plants of the Southeast''

The Virginia Native Plant Society has named the fringe tree as the 1997 Virginia Wildflower of the Year. For information on local VNPS chapters and the native plant tours they sponsor:

  • Peninsula area: (804) 693-2953.
  • South Hampton Roads (757) 481-2285.

Sept. 1997

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