Kadsura Tree

Also known as the Katsura, is a deciduous tree introduced to Britain in 1865 from Japan. It was one of those many wonderful plants found on the 1910 expedition led by A. E. (Chinese) Wilson – the specimen he located was more than 40 metres high and had a huge girth of nearly 16 metres! The one I have in my garden is less than five feet tall though, so it can be kept down to a reasonable size by pruning and it is not fast growing. This tree has many things to recommend it: the flowers appear in April, just before the leaves. Male and female flowers grow on separate trees; the delicate, heart-shaped foliage appears with an unusual bronze tint in spring and gradually taking on a rich bluish green colour through the summer. Those leaves flare into a show of autumn colour that ranges from yellow to apricot-orange but forget the colour, focus on the fragrance!

It’s been described as anything from fresh-baked cakes to burnt toffee, but I can tell you for a fact that the Kadsura smells exactly like candyfloss! The autumn fragrance is utterly, utterly gorgeous – and it’s at its best just when very little else in the garden smells good.

The Kadsura Tree is a reliable and trouble-free performer, with no serious disease or insect problems. It prefers rich, moist and slightly acid soils and does especially well in cool temperate areas, it may not like heavy frosts but it seems to cope with them reasonably. A weeping form is also grown. True to its Latin name, Weeping Katsura Tree, Cercidiphyllum magnificum 'Pendulum' is a graceful tree but, and it goes to show you can’t have everything, it doesn’t smell quite as good as its upright cousin.

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