April 2024

The “Tokyo Tower” Fringe Tree

Are you looking for a small columnar tree that blooms, is fragrant

and takes sun to part shade? Voila! Meet the “Tokyo Tower“ Fringe

tree ( Chionanthus retusus).

After teaching a “Flowering Shrub and Small Trees” course this

Spring, I decided I wanted a fringe tree. I always loved the variety

but kept forgetting it over the years. The problem was I couldn’t

figure out where to fit another tree in my yard .

I looked up Fringe trees on line in an nursery inventory and found

this new cultivar “Tokyo Tower”. The only size that my husband

could fit in his small truck was a 15 gallon 4’ specimen (about $150).

Nature provided the perfect spot in my yard. I go by it each day

when I run my dogs beside my golf cart. I also see this sweet little

plant from the kitchen window. I love its pagoda shaped limbs and

its delicate, lightly fragrant, prolific white blooms.

So, if you need a small tree off the corner of your house or tucked in

the middle of a flower bed, try this fun variety. It will add to the

newness of Spring!

Happy April!

Christie lives in Manakin Sabot , Virginia where she manages a 3 acre garden. Her blogs are written from her 35 years as a personal and professional gardener.