Planted: 2007

   

This tree is planted on the east side of the Philadelphus Walk.
Distribution:Native to southwestern China, specifically southeastern Sichuan near Chongqing.
Planting Date:March 2007, purchased from Pan-Global Plants, Frampton-on Severn, Gloucestershire.
Growth Habit:A large, broadly conical deciduous tree with attractive foliage and hop-like fruit clusters in late summer and autumn. Ultimate size in more than 50 years: 8 to 12 m height , 4 to 8 m spread.
Bark:Smooth and grey, ultimately fissured and scaly.
Leaf:Narrow oval, double-toothed leaves have prominent veins and are up to 27cm long. They emerge purple-bronze in spring, becoming olive-green.
Flowers:Insignificant
Seeds:Papery catkins up to 30cm long appear in spring, gradually fading to tawny brown
Uses:Ornamental – native species grown for commercial applications.
Hornbeam is a strong and durable wood. Historically, it was a prized source of hardwood, particularly for making tools, coach wheels, and cogs in traditional windmills. Today, its wood is primarily used for furniture, flooring, and wood turning.
Valuable as a wildlife habitat. Responds well to coppice and clipped hedge management.
Plant Hunter:It is named after Fang Wen-Pei (1899-1983), a Chinese botanist and expert on the trees of Sichuan, who first collected this species near Nanchuan Xian, in southeastern Sichuan, near Chongqing in theearly 1920s.
Introduction Date:Seeds were introduced to Kew in October 1991 from a collection made by John Simmons, Charles Erskine, Charles Howick and William McNamara.
Anecdotes:Also called Monkey Tail Hornbeam.