Grow and Care for Your Own Fringe Tree (Old Man's Beard)

Fringe Tree or Old Man's Beard is a beautiful, small tree when it is in full spring bloom. It can grow nearly anywhere in the continental United States and its white flower color kicks in just as the dogwood blooms are fading.

The upright oval to rounded form of fringe tree adds dark green color in summer, bright white flowers in spring. The pure white, slightly fragrant flowers hang in long, spectacular panicles which appear to cover the tree with cotton for two weeks.

Specifics

• Scientific name: Chionanthus virginicus
• Pronunciation: kye-oh-NANTH-us ver-JIN-ih-kuss
• Common name(s): fringetree, old man's beard
• Family: Oleaceae
• USDA hardiness zones: 3 through 9
• Origin: native to North America
• Uses: container or above-ground planter; wide tree lawns; medium-sized tree lawns; recommended for buffer strips around parking lots or for median strip plantings in the highway; near a deck or patio; narrow tree lawns; specimen; sidewalk cutout (tree pit); residential street tree

Special Characteristics

Fringetree seedlings can vary in individual characteristics and are nearly impossible to propagate using cuttings. The small tree is cold hardy down to -30 F. Fringe tree makes a great woodland or understory naturalizing plant but can also prosper in full sun. In a word, it is a versatile plant.

Horticulturist Quotes

This tree looks stunning, almost ethereal when seen at peak bloom at night, illuminated by a full moon. And in the developed landscapes of your home, car headlights scanning around the edges of a driveway work just as well.

- Guy Sternberg, Native Trees

Fringe tree is an apt moniker for this delightful small flowering tree, whose white blossoms do resemble a fanciful white fringe suspended in the spring sunlight.

- Rick Darke, The American Woodland Garden

Leaves

• Leaf arrangement: Opposite/sub-opposite; whorled
• Leaf type: Simple
• Leaf margin: Entire
• Leaf shape: Oblong; obovate
• Leaf venation: Pinnate; reticulate
• Leaf type and persistence: Deciduous
• Leaf blade length: 4 to 8 inches; 2 to 4 inches
• Leaf color: Green
• Fall color: Yellow
• Fall characteristic: Not showy

Trunk and Branches

Bark is thin and easily damaged from mechanical impact; droop as the tree grows, and will require pruning for vehicular or pedestrian clearance beneath the canopy; routinely grown with, or trainable to be grown with, multiple trunks; not particularly showy; tree wants to grow with several trunks but can be trained to grow with a single trunk; no thorns.

• Pruning requirement: Needs little pruning to develop a strong structure.
• Breakage: Resistant
• Current year twig color: Brown; green; gray
• Current year twig thickness: Medium; thick

Culture

• Light requirement: tree grows in part shade/part sun; tree grows in the shade; tree grows in full sun
• Soil tolerances: clay; loam; sand; acidic; occasionally wet; well-drained
• Drought tolerance: moderate

In Depth

Dark green, glossy leaves emerge later in the spring than those of most plants, just as the flowers are at peak bloom. This differs from Chinese fringe tree which flowers at the terminal end of the spring growth flush. Female plants develop purple-blue fruits which are highly prized by many birds. Fall color is yellow in northern climates, but is an unnoticed brown in the south, with many leaves dropping to the ground a blackened green. The flowers can be forced into early bloom indoors.

The plant eventually grows 20 to 30 feet tall in the woods, spreads to 15 feet, and tolerates city conditions well, but trees are more commonly seen 10 to 15 feet tall in landscapes where they are grown in the open. It forms as a multi-stemmed round ball if left unpruned but can be trained into a small tree with lower branches removed. Although reportedly difficult to transplant, the fringe tree can be successfully moved quite easily with proper care. It could be used beneath power lines where no pruning would be required.

Fringetree looks best in a sunny spot sheltered from the wind. The foliage appears more attractive when grown with several hours of shade but the tree blooms best in full sun. It is probably best overall with some afternoon shade. A North American native commonly found in upland woods and stream banks throughout most of the South, fringe tree prefers moist, acidic soil and will gladly grow in even wet soils. It grows very slowly, usually 6 to 10 inches per year, but can grow a foot per year if given rich, moist soil and plenty of fertilizer. There is only one flush of growth each year.