This beautiful shrub, also known as White Fringe Tree and Greybeard Tree, is a member of the olive family. It produces fragrant, fringe like white flowers that grow downward during mid-spring, and produces dark blue berries in the fall. Its deciduous foliage turns a beautiful golden-yellow in autumn. The Fringe Tree can be propagated from root clippings or seeds, but is not commonly stocked in nurseries. It is a short-lived shrub tree that reaches a maximum height of 25 feet at maturity.
Fringe Trees are hardy shrubs that have medium to high water requirements and don’t fare well in drought conditions. One of the later blooming varieties, the Chinese Fringe Tree, is shorter at maturity, reaching only 12 feet, and is not as hardy. It has no known toxic qualities to plant, animal or man, and has proven itself to be an excellent understory shrub. The Fringe Tree is commonly distributed throughout the southern and southeastern United States and is attractive to a variety of small birds and mammals. Large herbivores such as deer find the foliage and blossoms tasty. The Tree does not grow fast or propagate rapidly from its own seed production. Seeds will not germinate if exposed to temperatures below 30F; otherwise seed germination is vigorous. Clean and dry seeds from unblemished fruit before planting. Root and plant cuttings transplants also work well; however, allow cut surfaces to callous over for best results. The Fringe tree grows well on poor soil conditions as well as fertile silt loams.