Tree to 20 m tall. Bark smooth, grey. Leaves entire, broad-ovate, 15-30 cm long, 12-28 cm wide, pubescent with branching hairs; apex acute. Young shoots glabrous. Flowers opening after or with the leaves; Oct-Nov. Cymes pedicellate. Calyx lobes straight, longer than tube. Corolla 5-7 cm long, blue-violet with small purple dots and 2 yellow lines inside tube. Capsule broad-ovoid to globose, 4-5 cm long.
Korea, Japan & amp;N China
[P. imperialis Siebold & amp;Zucc.]
Source of timber.
SPECIMENS SA: Adelaide (Mt Lofty Bot. Garden).VIC: Porepunkah (Bright Rd).
P. elongata Hu S.Y. is similar, but has stellate hairs and larger flowers up to 9 cm long. P. fargesii Franch. from SW China, Chun po tung, is a tree to 18 m tall. Bark smooth, grey. Leaves entire, broad-ovate, 15-22 cm long, 12-20 cm wide, densely pubescent below with dendroid hairs; apex acute. Flowers opening after leaves, cymes sessile on the panicle branches. Calyx lobes straight, longer than tube. Corolla 5.5-7 cm long, pale blue-violet with a yellow throat; tube almost straight, longer than lobes. Capsule ovoid, 3-4.5 cm long. It is a source of timber and specimens may be seen at Mt Lofty Bot. Garden, Adelaide.
Source: (2002). Paulownia. In: . Horticultural Flora of South-eastern Australia. Volume 4. Flowering plants. Dicotyledons. Part 3. The identification of garden and cultivated plants. University of New South Wales Press.
Paulownia tomentosa 'Lilacina'
Corolla tube pale lavender, lobes darker. Has sometimes been confused with p. fargesii. [Paulownia lilacina Sprague] Specimens act: Australian National University (near Hanna Neumann building). Vic: Melbourne (Bot. Gds, periphery of Oak Lawn).