Japanese stewartia is a slow-growing tree from Japan and Korea, planted in gardens for its camellia-like white flowers in early summer, red-orange fall color, and smooth bark that peels into a patchwork of gray, brown, and orange. It does not grow wild in the United States, but American gardeners have grown it since before 1874. It is hardy in 4–7.
Appearance
- Growth form
- A small to medium deciduous tree, usually 30–50 ft (10–15 m) tall in the wild and often much smaller in gardens.
- Leaves
- Oval leaves 1½–4¾ in (4–12 cm) long with finely toothed edges. Fall color ranges from yellow and bright red-orange to deep purple-red.
- Flowers
- White, five-petaled, camellia-like flowers about 2–3 in (5–8 cm) across with a center of orange-yellow stamens. Each flower is short-lived, but new ones keep opening for several weeks in early to midsummer.
- Fruit
- A pointed, hairy, woody capsule about 1 in (2.5 cm) long that splits into five parts; it is not showy.
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- Mountain forests (native range)
- Gardens and arboretums
- Range
- Native to mixed mountain forests in Japan (Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu) and Korea. In the United States it is a garden tree only; it does not grow wild here.
- Preferred conditions
- Prefers rich, well-drained, evenly moist soil. It tolerates full sun in cool areas but does best with afternoon shade where summers are hot and dry.
Growing it
- Care
- Hardy to about −22 °F (−30 °C), but it dislikes long stretches of heat, as in the Southeast. Young trees transplant best.
Name and classification
- About the name
- Trees of Korean origin are sometimes sold as Stewartia koreana or the Koreana Group. They tend to have flatter-opening flowers and especially good red fall color, but they are now included in Stewartia pseudocamellia.
- Varieties and forms
- Weeping 'Cascade' (red-purple fall color) and large-flowered 'Milk and Honey' (flowers up to 4 in / 10 cm, orange-red fall color) are the cultivars you are most likely to meet in gardens.
Culture and stories
- Culture and stories
- Plant hunter Ernest Wilson collected seed at the foot of Jirisan in Korea in 1917, and trees from that seed still grow at Harvard's Arnold Arboretum in Boston.
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