White fringe tree
Chionanthus virginicus · Oleaceae
In late spring the whole plant is draped in drooping clusters of narrow, pure white petals, like fringe, with a sweet scent.
- Size
- 15 ft tall, 15 ft wide
- Zones
- 3 to 9
- Light
- Full sun to part shade
- Flowers
- Late May to early June
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Anchor
A bed built around white fringe tree
The planner designed this bed around white fringe tree when this page was made: a 30 × 14 ft (9.1 × 4.3 m) English border in zone 6, part sun. It chose the other plants from the 708 that suit those conditions, and says below why white fringe tree stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 White fringe tree × 1, white
- 2 Carpathian bellflower × 19, blue
- 3 Creeping phlox × 13, pink
- 4 Blue holly × 1, blue-green leaves
- 5 Brown-eyed Susan × 8, yellow
- 6 Canadian burnet × 4, white
- 7 Wild geranium × 8, pink
- 8 Indian pink × 11, red
- 9 Shooting star × 42, pink
- 10 Joe-Pye weed 'Baby Joe' × 3, pink
- 11 Dwarf crested iris × 105, lavender
- 12 Camassia × 6, blue
- 13 Turk's cap lily × 3, orange
- 14 Double snowdrop × 22, white
Why this plant
- The only bold leaves here. The rest are medium and fine. A change of leaf keeps plants distinct when nothing is in flower.
- The only airy sprays. The others are bells, dense clusters, daisies and others. Shape reads at a distance, where colours blur.
- Part of the bed's structure. Shrubs and grasses keep their shape when the perennials die down. So does blue holly.
Why here
- Anchors a back corner. At 15 ft it is the tallest plant here, and the tallest close the ends of the bed, where they stand in front of nothing.
- A step in the back row. Next to brown-eyed Susan (4 ft): no two neighbours there are the same height, so the back steps up and down like a skyline.
- One plant, alone. A shrub is seen as an object, and needs clear ground around it.
Why now
- In flower for three weeks. From late May to early June.
- In company. With wild geranium, shooting star and camassia in late May: 4 kinds at once.
Planned as an English border: 28 of the 31 groups (90%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. The most in flower at one time is 5 kinds, in mid May. When the flowers are over, blue holly keeps the bed from looking bare. Worth a second look, according to the Design check: heights.
The planner's own design check: 11 Excellent, 4 Good, 1 Satisfactory, 1 Needs revision. Its weakest point is height and scale: Heights average about 8 in at the front, 22 in in the middle and 3½ ft at the back. Along the back row the heights step up and down, between 4 ft and 15 ft, and no two neighbours are the same height.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where white fringe tree goes in a border
At 15 ft it belongs at the back of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is super tall (over 6½ ft).
Its job: anchor. A shrub that gives the bed permanent structure. Planted singly, as soon as the front edge is laid; everything else is arranged around it.
A large native shrub or small tree, very late into leaf and spectacular for two weeks. It tolerates city air and clay. Females bear blue fruit that birds take.
- A specimen for late spring
- Native woodland edges
- City gardens
What to plant with white fringe tree
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Virginia sweetspire: medium leaves against its bold ones; spires rising out of its mound; low enough (5 ft) to stand in front of it.
- Christmas fern: its dark green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; medium leaves against its bold ones; low enough (20 in) to stand in front of it.
- Foamflower: in flower together for two weeks, from late May; medium leaves against its bold ones; spires rising out of its mound.
Questions about white fringe tree
Does white fringe tree need sun or shade?
White fringe tree grows in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sun a day), part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun) and part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning).
It wants soil that stays evenly moist, rich in organic matter, and a good soak in dry spells. Once settled in, it stands drought.
What zones does white fringe tree grow in?
USDA zones 3 to 9. It is hardy to zone 3, which means it survives winter nights down to about −30 °F (−34 °C).
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does white fringe tree flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers late May to early June. As a spring flower it moves about a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer, later where it is colder.
| Zone 3 | Early June to mid June |
|---|---|
| Zone 4 | Late May to mid June |
| Zone 5 | Late May to early June |
| Zone 6 | Mid May to early June |
| Zone 7 | Early May to late May |
| Zone 8 | Early May to late May |
| Zone 9 | Late April to late May |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should white fringe tree be planted?
13 ft (400 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 15 ft (450 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 15 ft (450 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many white fringe tree plants do I need?
Usually one. At 13 ft (400 cm) across, it is a plant you place, not one you mass. For a hedge or screen, set them 13 ft apart: one plant for a 10 ft run.
In the bed above, the planner used one in one group.
Is white fringe tree poisonous to dogs and cats?
No toxicity is recorded for dogs, cats, horses or people, according to NC State Extension.
"Not toxic" is not "edible": a pet that eats a lot of any plant can be sick.
Do deer eat white fringe tree?
They may. NC State does not list it as resistant to deer or rabbits. Where they visit, protect it, or plant it among ones they avoid.
What flowers after white fringe tree?
White fringe tree is over by early June. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Virginia sweetspire: from early June to early July, 5 ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems (a recorded partner).
- Smokebush 'Royal Purple': from early June to late July, 11½ ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Oakleaf hydrangea: from mid June to early August, 6½ ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
What does white fringe tree look like in winter?
White fringe tree drops its leaves and stands as bare branches. That is when to see its shape, and to prune it if it needs pruning.
Is white fringe tree good for bees and butterflies?
White fringe tree is visited by pollinators and songbirds.
It is native to the United States.
In these guides
- Plants for dry shade
- Pet-safe plants for a sunny border
- Pet-safe plants for shade
- Native plants for shade
- Plants that feed garden birds
- Plants for a white garden
Zone guides: Zone 3 · Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8 · Zone 9
Every fact on record
- Type
- Shrub
- Size
- 15 ft (450 cm) tall, 15 ft (450 cm) wide
- Plant
- 13 ft (400 cm) apart
- Height class
- Super tall (over 6½ ft)
- Place in the bed
- Back
- Flowers
- Late May to early June; airy sprays; white
- Leaves
- Bold texture, deciduous; dark green
- Shape
- Rounded, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 3 to 9
- Light
- Full sun, part sun, part shade
- Soil
- Rich, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- None needed
- Family
- Oleaceae
- Comes from
- Central & Eastern U.S.A
- Attracts
- Pollinators, songbirds
- Stands up to
- Drought, pollution
Checked against NC State Extension. Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.