Trees & woodland lore · Western North Carolina field companion
White fringetree
Chionanthus virginicus
Spring leaves. Taxon reference; photograph alone does not establish a named cultivar.☀ Full sun · ◐ Part sun or part shadeK. Andre ↗ · CC BY 2.0Photo contextResized and converted to WebP; no diagnostic content altered.
Adaptable native ornamental; monitor for emerald ash borer because it is in the olive family.
Broad, simple leaves occur opposite one another; inspect several nodes because leaf size varies.
More growing details
Read the bark
Gray bark begins fairly smooth and becomes scaly or shallowly ridged.
Fruit & seed
Olive-like dark fruits occur on female trees; a male tree may carry no fruit.
Winter character
Opposite buds and a small, often multi-stemmed habit help when leaves are absent.
Origin & place
The species occurs naturally in the southern Appalachian region; a planted specimen is not evidence of wild local origin.
Compare with Chinese fringetree
The species are close; use flowering twig and leaf-hair characters with a botanical key, not white flowers alone.
WNC Notes
Adaptable native ornamental; monitor for emerald ash borer because it is in the olive family.
Sun Exposure
Full sun–part shade
MATURE HEIGHT (FT)
12–20
MATURE WIDTH (FT)
12–20
BLOOM SEASON
Late spring
BLOOM COLOR
White
FALL / WINTER COLOR
Yellow
Wet-Soil Tolerance
Moderate
Drought Tolerance
Moderate
LOOK CLOSELY
Two views, a closer look.
Place two photographs beside one another. Compare the overall plant with leaves, flowers, or bark when those views are available. Captions identify what each photograph actually shows. Images are not at the same scale; species references may show different cultivars.
Spring leaves. Taxon reference; photograph alone does not establish a named cultivar.☀ Full sun · ◐ Part sun or part shadeK. Andre ↗ · CC BY 2.0Photo contextResized and converted to WebP; no diagnostic content altered.White fringetree bark — species reference; named cultivar identity not inferred.☀ Full sun · ◐ Part sun or part shadeCossey25 ↗ · CC BY-SA 4.0Photo contextResized and converted to WebP; original composition retained.
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