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 Liriodendron tulipifera branch with flower at Sumter, South Carolina. No orange pigment occurs in the L. chinense flower. | ||||||||||||
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| Liriodendron chinense (Hemsl.) Sarg. |
Liriodendron Tulip tree is a genus of two species of tree in the Magnoliaceae family. Both species are large deciduous trees.
Liriodendron tulipifera is native to eastern North America. Liriodendron chinense is native to China and Vietnam.
Description
Tulip tree is sometimes called "yellow poplar", but this name should be avoided, as the plants are not closely related. The tree is also called canoewood, saddle leaf tree and white wood. The Onondaga tribe calls it Ko-yen-ta-ka-ah-tas (the white tree).
Liriodendron are easily recognized by their leaves, which are distinct, having four lobes in most cases and a cross-cut notched or straight apex. Leaf size varies from 8-22 cm long and 6-25 cm wide.
Leaves are slightly larger in L. chinense but with considerable overlap between the species; the petiole is 4-18 cm long. Leaves on young trees tend to be more deeply lobed and larger size than those on mature trees. In autumn the leaves turn yellow, or yellow and brown. Both species grow rapidly in rich moist soils of temperate climates. They hybridize easily and the prodigy often grow faster than either parent.
Flowers are 3-10 cm in diameter and have nine tepals, three short outer sepals, and six inner petals, yellow-green with an orange flare at the base. They are superficially similar to a tulip in shape, hence the tree's name. Flowers of L. tulipifera have a faint cucumber odor. The stamens and pistils are arranged spirally around a central spike or gynaecium; the stamens fall off, and the pistils become the samaras. The fruit is a cone-like aggregate of samaras 4-9 cm long, each of which has a roughly tetrahedral seed with one edge attached to the central conical spike and the other edge attached to the wing.
Distribution
Liriodendron are also easily recognized by their general shape, with the higher branches sweeping together in one direction, and they are also recognizable by their height, as the taller ones usually protrude above the canopy of oaks, maples, and other trees -- more markedly with the American species. Appalachian cove forests often contain several tuliptrees of height and girth not seen in other species of eastern hardwood.
In the Appalachian cove forests, trees 150 to 165 feet in height are common, and trees from 166 to nearly 180 feet are also found. More Liriodendron over 170 feet in height have been measured by the Eastern Native Tree Society than for any other eastern species. The current height champion is approximately 178.5 feet in height and grows along Baxter Creek in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The tallest tuliptrees on record probably reached 190 feet in height, taller than any other eastern hardwood. Today the tuliptree is rivaled in eastern forests only by white pine, loblolly pine, and eastern hemlock. There are reports of tuliptrees over 200 feet in height, but none of the measurements have been confirmed by the Eastern Native Tree Society. Most reflect measurement errors attributable to not accurately locating the highest crown point relative to the base of the tree - a common error made by the users employing only clinometers/hypsometers when measuring height.
Maximum circumferences for the species are between 24 and 30 feet at breast height, although a few historical specimens m ay have been slightly larger. Today, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park has the greatest population of tuliptrees 20-feet and over in circumference. The largest volume tuliptree known anywhere is the Sag Branch Giant which has a trunk and limb volume approaching 4,000 cubic feet.
Like many "Arcto-Tertiary" genera, Liriodendron became extinct in Europe due to large-scale glaciation. It is known widely as fossils in Europe and well outside its natural range in Asia and North America, showing a once circumpolar distribution.
Cultivation & Use
Liriodendron sp. prefer a temperate climate, sun or part shade and deep, fertile, well drained and slightly acidic soil. Propagation is via seed or grafting. Plants grown from seed may take more than eight years to flower. Grafted plants will flower earlier depending on the age of the scion plant.
Tuliptree wood is fine grained and stable. It is easy to work and commonly used for cabinet and furniture framing. The wood is only moderately rot resistant, and is not commonly used in shipbuilding, but has found some recent use in light craft construction. The wood is readily available and in trade often called yellow poplar. When air dried its density is approximately 24 pounds per cubic foot.
The name canoewood probably refers to the tree's use for construction of dugout canoes by Eastern Native Americans, for which its fine grain and large trunk size is eminently suited.
Species & Cultivars
Liriodendron tulipifera
Liriodendron chinense
L. tulipifera Aureomarginatum has green leaves heavily edged in yellow
L. tulipifera Fastigiatum is half the size of L. tulipifera and L. chinense, with an erect, columnar formation (fastigiate)
References and external links
- Hunt, D. (ed). 1998. Magnolias and their allies. International Dendrology Society & Magnolia Society. (ISBN 0-9517234-8-0)
- Parks, C.R., Wendel, J.F., Sewell, M.M., & Qiu, Y.-L. (1994). The significance of allozyme variation and introgression in the Liriodendron tulipifera complex (Magnoliaceae). Amer. J. Bot. 81 (7): 878-889 abstract and first page
- Parks, C.R., Miller, N.G., Wendel, J.F. and McDougal, K.M. (1983). Genetic diversity within the genus Liriodendron (Magnoliaceae). Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 70 (4): 658-666
- Collingwood, G.H., Brush, W.D. (1984) Knowing your trees. American Forestry Association. (L.O.C. card no. 78-52994):286-287
- abstract and first page
- Moriaty, William. The Tulip Tree in Central Florida
- Liriodendron chinense
- Liriodendron chinense trunk and flowers
- Kew: Plants: Tulip Trees, Liriodendron tulipifera & Liriodendron chinense
- Flora of China draft account of Magnoliaceae (site currently down; see google cache)
- Liriodendron tulipifera images at bioimages.vanderbilt.edu
- Botanicas Trees & Shrubs, Random House, Sydney, 2005 http://hazardkentucky.com/more/tuliptree.htm