In last month’s column, we discussed one of the members of that small, select group of trees that bear their ornamental flowers during summer.
In this issue, we will consider another member of the same group, one that blooms in August. While quite different from the golden rain tree of July, it is nonetheless equally effective.
Sophora Japonica
Sophora japonica has bestowed on it the somewhat conflicting common names of the Chinese scholar and Japanese pagoda trees. As it becomes more widely known, the common name will become simplified to pagoda tree.
Regardless of the specific name Japonica, the home of the pagoda tree is in China. There it is widely distributed, and the flower buds are in popular demand as the source of a yellow dye, while the fruits are valued for their medicinal qualities.
Grow from Seeds
In 1747, seeds were sent to Europe by a French missionary, and some of the seedlings were planted in the gardens of the Petit Trianon at Versailles. Here, they grew well but did not bloom until 32 years later.
From this, we can safely conclude that the tree grows rather slowly and does not bloom freely until well in years. Until the flowers were produced, it was not certain what genus the tree belonged to.
Pagoda Tree Features
In China, the pagoda tree develops into a rugged, massive-trunked tree of 90 feet or more. It has not attained that size in European and American gardens, but mature specimens are very distinctive in appearance. A handsome old tree is in the Public Garden in Boston, Mass.
The pinnate or feather-formed leaves are a rich dark green, pale on the undersurface, and are handsome all summer.
They retain their good color late in the season and are among the last leaves to fall, a characteristic that adds to their desirability in the home landscape.
The rich foliage makes a splendid background for the flowers which open in August. The individual blooms are about ½” inches across and resemble small sweet peas. They are borne in large, branched clusters that vary in length from 6” to 9” inches.
Though dull, creamy white, they are freely produced and have a hidden charm. Only one or two other trees are in bloom in the northern gardens now.
The pagoda tree has fruits that are quite unusual in their way and which frequently excite curiosity. While essentially a stalked, fleshy pod containing one to six seeds, there is a constriction between each seed, resulting in the pod frequently resembling a short string of beads.
When planted near a walk, the fallen fruits are sometimes a slight nuisance, but this is the tree’s only objectionable character.
It is thoroughly hardy in the area of New York City and for some distance to the north. In its soil requirements, it is adaptable, seeming to prefer a well-drained, light loam. Hot, dry situations do not daunt the pagoda tree, and for this reason, it gets along well in the city.
In the home landscape, it makes a handsome lawn specimen, and were it not for the possible objection to the fallen fruit, it would make a splendid street tree.
While weeping trees have little place in the average home grounds, they unquestionably have a strong attraction to many people.
The pagoda tree has an interesting weeping form that we seldom see but which is superior to many of the pendulous-branched shrubs more commonly cultivated.
It is usually budded onto straight stems of the normal form about 6′ or 8′ feet tall, and the green stems hang straight down, often touching the ground.
It rarely, if ever, flowers. In old trees, the upper branches become gnarled and twisted, giving a very picturesque appearance, particularly in the winter.
Sophora Viciifolia
In late May, a charming shrub bloomed in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden that we would never suspect belonged to the same genus as the pagoda tree.
Sophora viciifolia also hails from China, where it is widely distributed and is said to form large heaths on rocky, barren areas.
It is compact and bushy in habit with stiff, spiny branches and grows to 6’ feet or more in height. Tiny leaflets, a quarter of an inch long or less, make up the attractive pinnate leaves.
The small, pea-like flowers are borne in great profusion. They are white with a blue calyx.
44659 by Charles F. Doney