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Persian Spire™ Parrotia

Persian Spire™ Parrotia

(Photo courtesy of NetPS Plant Finder)

Persian Spire™ Parrotia foliage

Persian Spire™ Parrotia foliage

(Photo courtesy of NetPS Plant Finder)

Other Names:  Persian Ironwood

Brand:  J. Frank Schmidt & Son Co.

Description:

A unique variety with a very neat, columnar habit of growth; foliage emerges purple, and matures to lime green with purple margins; fall colors ranging from yellow to orange to burgundy red, holding into late fall; very adaptable to diverse conditions

Ornamental Features

Persian Spire™ Parrotia is primarily valued in the landscape for its rigidly columnar form. It has attractive lime green foliage edged in plum purple which emerges purple in spring. The serrated oval leaves are highly ornamental and turn outstanding shades of yellow, orange and red in the fall. The mottled brown bark is extremely showy and adds significant winter interest.

Landscape Attributes

Persian Spire™ Parrotia is a dense deciduous tree with a narrowly upright and columnar growth habit. Its average texture blends into the landscape, but can be balanced by one or two finer or coarser trees or shrubs for an effective composition.

This is a relatively low maintenance tree, and should not require much pruning, except when necessary, such as to remove dieback. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Persian Spire™ Parrotia is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Vertical Accent
• Hedges/Screening

Planting & Growing

Persian Spire™ Parrotia will grow to be about 25 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 10 feet. It has a low canopy with a typical clearance of 1 foot from the ground, and should not be planted underneath power lines. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for 60 years or more.

This tree should only be grown in full sunlight. It is very adaptable to both dry and moist locations, and should do just fine under average home landscape conditions. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America.