Forests, Trees and Livelihoods ISSN: 1472-8028 (Print) 2164-3075 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/tftl20 Ornamental, crop, or invasive? The history of the Empress tree (Paulownia) in the USA Whitney Adrienne Snow To cite this article: Whitney Adrienne Snow (2015) Ornamental, crop, or invasive? The history of the Empress tree (Paulownia) in the USA, Forests, Trees and Livelihoods, 24:2, 85-96, DOI: 10.1080/14728028.2014.952353 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14728028.2014.952353 Published online: 08 Sep 2014. Submit your article to this journal Article views: 64 View related articles View Crossmark data Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=tftl20 Download by: [University of Nebraska, Lincoln] Date: 10 October 2015, At: 11:22 Forests, Trees and Livelihoods, 2015 Vol. 24, No. 2, 85–96, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14728028.2014.952353 Ornamental, crop, or invasive? The history of the Empress tree (Paulownia) in the USA Whitney Adrienne Snow* Department of History, Midwestern State University, Wichita Falls, TX, USA The Paulownia tree first arrived in the USA in the early nineteenth century and quickly transitioned from an exotic oddity to a beloved ornamental by some and a reviled invasive species by others. Many gardeners and horticulturalists praised the tree for its rapid growth and beautiful lavender blossoms. Critics thought the non-native tree a threat to native flora and sought its eradication. One species, Paulownia tomentosa,is invasive and has been especially vilified by organizations ranging from the National Park Service and National Forests Service to the US Department of Agriculture. Another species, Paulownia elongata, started to gain attention as a viable domestic tree crop in the 1980s. Demand derived primarily from Asian countries, especially Japan where the tree had been traditionally used for dowry chests, furniture, and musical instruments. Due to over harvesting, Japan had suffered a severe shortage to the extent that Paulownia made up a large chunk of the country’s wood imports. P. elongata and various hybrids are currently grown by Americans ranging from diversified farmers to businessmen and even former president Jimmy Carter. Paulownia growers believe that the tree’s value expands beyond furniture and other carvings to environmental possibilities such as biofuels, biomass, electricity, and even air purification. Deemed a pest by some and a profitable commodity by others, the Paulownia has become a permanent part of the American landscape but measures must be taken to contain P. tomentosa and keep P. elongata from becoming invasive. Keywords: farmers; biodiversity; homegardens; tree planting; afforestation; biomass Introduction The Paulownia, a seemingly innocuous tree from China, became a resident of the USA in the 1840s, but only in the last several decades has the transplant taken the country by storm. A small Paulownia wood industry based largely on the species Paulownia elongata began in the 1970s but this particular tree has suffered negative publicity due to the poor reputation of its relative Paulownia tomentosa which many states declare undesirable. Called a beautiful, profitable blessing by some and a pesky bane by others, the Paulownia became a source of controversy. Farmers and lumbermen treasured P. elongata but the US Downloaded by [University of Nebraska, Lincoln] at 11:22 10 October 2015 Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the National Park Service (NPS) vilified P. tomentosa. P. elongata serves as a niche crop which not only meets foreign demand but contributes to the environmental movement and while P. tomentosa wears the mantle of invasive species, it has fans among gardeners. Members of the same genus, these two species have become an irrevocable part of the US landscape, but both need to be contained in order to protect native species, especially those on endangered lists. Due to large population numbers and fire/poison risks to native species, total eradication is not the answer. This paper suggests that controlling the spread of P. tomentosa and preventing the escape of P. elongata from plantations into the wild may be the best solution. *Email: [email protected] q 2014 Taylor & Francis 86 W.A. Snow Before delving into the tale of the princess tree, several words must be defined: native, non-native, invasive, and stakeholder (Heger et al. 2013). The term native refers to an indigenous species. A non-native is non-indigenous while an invasive multiplies wildly to the detriment of species in the vicinity. While the invasive has been recognized as a danger, the non-native has yet to pose a problem but has the capacity to do so (Alpert et al. 2000). Whether or not a plant is invasive has more to do with public opinion than its status as non-native (Kueffer 2013). This is where the term stakeholder, any group impacted by the presence of a non-native, comes into play. These might include farmers, gardeners, and environmentalists. Studies on invasive species have been more and more prevalent since the 1980s and contributors include but are not limited to ecologists, botanists, scientists, biologists, sociologists, psychologists, and historians (Simberloff et al. 2013). Various veins of ecology, natural resources, and/or environmental science appear in numerous articles (Bremner & Park 2007; Garcia-Llorente et al. 2008). Discipline-meshing has become commonplace, but there are fewer works on invasives in which natural sciences and humanities are combined (Kueffer 2013). Many ecologists have tried to implement sociology and psychology when addressing the question of invasives (Fischer et al. 2011; Selge et al. 2011). Written by an historian, this article is, above all else, a work of history but may shed light on two non-native species while adding to the growing body of interdisciplinary research. Addressing public opinion on Paulownia is critical to understanding how one species of Paulownia became invasive and another remained non-native. The public often dislike talk of eliminating a non-native species, especially those that have long been in the country. Pre-conceived notions about these species are deeply embedded. The public may imagine that those advocating eradication are motivated by xenophobia (Selge et al. 2011; Sharp et al. 2011). The pretty blossoms of the Paulownia tree, its nickname Empress, and its over 150-year presence in the USA are powerful inhibitors of public support for its destruction (Pejchar & Mooney 2009; Kueffer 2013). Instead of producing arguments for the elimination of invasives, conservationists need to call for the protection of native species being endangered by invasives. Publications for the public should be pro-native rather than anti-invasive (McKinney 2006; Larson et al. 2011). Unless people can identify invasives, they may target native look-alikes. Even with in-depth community outreach, conservationists argue that public support may remain elusive (Young et al. 2013). Public opposition to the eradication of non-natives often includes the argument that the exotics do no harm. A few experts claim the impact of some non-natives is ‘negligible’ (Skurski et al. 2013). Some argue that the influx of non-natives is perfectly natural, citing Downloaded by [University of Nebraska, Lincoln] at 11:22 10 October 2015 Beringia as one example (Brown & Sax 2004). Others claim non-natives are actually secondary to habitat loss when it comes to risks to biodiversity (Wilcove et al. 1998). This stance has been challenged by those who argue that exotics are the main danger to biodiversity (Garcia-Llorente et al. 2008; Kueffer 2013). The positions stakeholder groups have on the risks of non-natives and what, if anything should be done, remain varied. Because so many invasive species are too deeply entrenched in the landscape, containment, not eradication, should be pursued (Somaweera et al. 2010; Kueffer 2013). Control ‘can be very expensive and may be impossible’ (Mehta et al. 2007, p. 238). This is especially true since the presence of these non-native species is intertwined with history, trade, and profits (Pejchar & Mooney 2009). Being a commodity complicates management and this is clearly seen in the following, an analysis that details how the Paulownia tree reached the USA soil, shaped the country’s past, and may yet shape its future. History of the Empress tree 87 Often associated with monarchs, the Paulownia tree had names such as Empress and Princess. With this royal link came mystery, allure, fascination, and appeal that gave the tree a place in popular culture. This exotic resident had a cameo in the film Rocky and can be seen close to the steps actor Sylvester Stallone climbs (Lacy 2000). The tree played a key role in a New York Times Best-selling book – Berry’s (2005) Romanov Prophecy. Given publicity in books, pamphlets, magazines, and movies, the Paulownia has only increased its infamy with the passage of time. While dubbed a trespasser by critics, it has become as much a part of the terrain as any indigenous tree. The Paulownia did not receive the mantle invasive until the late twentieth century even though the tree has resided in the USA since the 1840s. This transition derived in part from Americans growing the trees in response to lulls in Japanese Paulownia-wood production. In this way, commodification of a non-native tree previously thought of as purely ornamental greatly contributed to its spread and fanned its reputation as a blight (Marshall et al. 2011). Use and history Indigenous to China, the genus Paulownia is currently made up of seven species and a number of hybrids (The International Plant Names Index). Often mistaken for a catalpa tree (Bignoniaceae), the Paulownia actually belongs to another family. The genus was long placed in the Scrophulariaceae or figwort family but was recently transferred by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group to the monogeneric family Paulowniaceae (APG III 2009).