The American Tulip Treewas the first North American tree to be brought to Europe. It is perfect as a solitaire planted in a garden in particularly exposed places, andvarieties of the American tulip treewill surprise many gardening connoisseurs. Find out what is worth knowing about this plant and what to pay attention to when deciding togrowing the American tulipin your own garden!
American tulip tree - flower
American Tulip Tree(Liriodendron tulipifera), due to its original leaves and flowers, quickly spread to parks, mainly in western and central Europe.In Poland, it is found in many old parks, often in the form of stately trees with tall, smooth or low-branched trunks at the ground.
The American tulip tree grows up to 25 m in height, with a similar width, and blooms in May.Tulip flowershard to spot among the young leaves of the tree, but they are extremely decorative, cup-shaped, with light greenish sepals and yellow crown petals. They resemble tulips and the name of the plant is derived from them. In autumntulip leavesmiraculously discolour to yellow or brownish yellow.
American tulip tree - cultivation
The cultivation of the American tulipis successful in fertile, fresh and sufficiently moist soil and sunny positions. This tree is sensitive to residual water and must not be planted in wetlands or in heavy and very wet soils. Due to its fleshy roots,the best time to planttulip trees will be spring.
In hot summer, do not forget aboutintensive watering of the American tulip , because in the absence of water the leaves of the tree turn yellow and fall off. The same happens with excess water.
The American tulip tree reproduces from seeds , which should be sown immediately after harvest in the fall or spring after stratification. We sow them in greenhouses in frame boxes or in a foil tent. Young seedlings require careful care.
American tulip tree - leaves
American tulip tree - varieties
The American tulip tree comes in several interesting varieties that make it an even more original and remarkable plant.Cultivars of the American tulipdiffer in leaf color, habit and height. Here are the 3 most interesting of them:
American tulip tree 'Aureomarginatum'- fast-growing variety of tulip tree with a pyramidal crown and two-color leaves, green in the middle, with an irregular cream border on the outside. Tulip tree 'Aureomarginatum' reaches 25 m in height.
American Tulipanowiec 'Edward Gursztyn'- characterized by slow growth and a spherical habit. It can be found grafted on the trunk, forming nice, compact crowns. The leaves of the cultivar 'Edward Gursztyn' are slightly smaller than those of the basic species. Interestingly, 'Edward Gursztyn' is the mostfrost-resistant tulip varietyThese advantages predispose this variety to cultivation in Polish gardens.
American Tulip Tree 'Fastigiatum'- this tulip variety is characterized by a columnar habit and a height of up to 25 m.
American tulip tree 'Aureomarginatum'
American tulip tree diseases
The unquestionableadvantage of the American tulip tree is its high resistance to diseases . This tree rarely falls on it, and if it does, it is most often affected by fungal disease -tulip leaf spot .
Symptoms of this disease of the American tulip treecan be recognized by single, small, round spots on the leaves appearing in the second half of summer. In case of severe infection, all or some of the leaves die off.
Toprevent leaf spot from developing in tulip treesrake fallen leaves in autumn and burn them. In summer, when symptoms are noticed, Topsin M 500 SC should be sprayed.
Anotherdisease of the tulip tree is cancer of the trunkIf brown, elongated spots appear on the trunk of the tulip tree, gradually moving upwards around its circumference, we are dealing with the symptoms of trunk cancer. After some time, the youngest stalks die and where the cancer occurs on the trunk, the trunk breaks off. Infected shoots of the plant should be cut out and the tulip tree should be sprayed with Topsin M 500 SC plant protection.
Characteristically curled upwards, from the tip to the half of the blade, the leaves indicate the presence ofthe American tulip pest In the characteristic bundle, there is a caterpillar of a rose tortrix, which comes out of hiding in June. In order toprotect the American tulip against the occurrence of this pest , remove the egg deposits from the branches and trunk in winter, and in May, when the larvae hatch, spray them with a contact agent, e.g. Karate Zeon 050 CS.
MSc Eng. Joanna Białowąs
