Paulownia coreana

Paulownia coreana, also called Paulownia glabrata or Korean paulownia, is an indigenous species of South Korea. It is cultivated in South Pyongan and south of Gyeonggi.[1]

Paulownia coreana
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Paulowniaceae
Genus: Paulownia
Species:
P. coreana
Binomial name
Paulownia coreana
Uyeki, 1925

Description

Korean paulownia is a tall broadleaf tree whose leaves start to fall in winter. It grows to a height of 15 meters to 20 meters, with diameter of 30 inches.[2]

Foliage

The leaves are 6 to 9 inches in length, and 5 to 11 inches in width. The other characteristics of the leaves are that they have opposite leaf arrangement and netted venation. The leafstalk is 4 to 8 inches long, and it has puffs on it.

Flower and fruit

Flowers bloom from May to June. Flowers are light purple. While Paulownia tomentosa has purple stripes on it, Paulownia coreana does not have any purple stripe. The flower has five divided petals, and each one are 5 to 7.5cm in length. The tree bears fruit from October to November. The fruit is light brown. It has shape of ellipse, and sticky puffs are on the fruit.[3]

Uses

Since Korean paulownia is light, and easy to handle, it is considered good lumber. It can be used for making furniture, athletic goods and musical instruments. Specifically, the timber delivers sound well, so it is used to make a geomungo (Korean musical instrument with six strings), a Korean mandolin, and a gayageum (Korean zither with twelve strings). It also grows rapidly, so when cultivated, it helps prevent disease in plants. Its leaves are used as an insecticide, and its bark is used as natural dyes. In addition, Paulownia coreana’s bark plays a great role in oriental medicine.[4]

References
  1. "Catalogue of Life : Paulownia coreana Uyeki". www.catalogueoflife.org. Retrieved 2018-12-02.
  2. "오동나무". 국가생물종지식정보시스템 www.nature.go.kr (in Korean). Retrieved 2018-12-02.
  3. "국립생물자원관 한반도의 생물다양성". species.nibr.go.kr (in Korean). Retrieved 2018-12-02.
  4. "수목도감 - 오동나무" (in Korean). 2009-08-22. Retrieved 2018-12-02.
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