A few weeks ago, I vowed that if I had an arboretum, I would include Japanese stewartia, for its beautiful, camellia-like flowers. As is often the case, a stewartia popped up in front of me just a few days later. Despite the recent infernal temperatures, it was not a heat-induced mirage.
I was on a walk through a local vest-pocket botanical garden and the sight of the medium-size tree transformed my somewhat abstract admiration into urgent reality. If the temperature had been under ninety and my holding area was not already full of plants, I would have made tracks to my wonderful local nursery for a baby stewartia.
The tree that inspired this flight of fancy was Japanese stewartia or Stewartia pseudocamellia. It was at its best, flaunting a large number of white blooms plus multi-colored exfoliating bark. This bark, which peels gradually from the tree, looks a little like camouflage, but a lot more interesting, with patches of gray, sepia, tawny orange-brown and taupe covering the trunk. The specimen in the botanical garden was relatively young, possibly 15 to 20 feet tall. When it grows up, it may reach about 40 feet.
In spring, when everything under the sun is blooming, stewartia flowers would be lovely. In late June or early July, when the earth is often parched, the kousa dogwoods have finished and the roses-of-Sharon are still only thinking about flowering, stewartia blossoms are more than lovely, they are refreshing.
Each flower features five to eight white petals surrounding a center of golden stamens. While only minimally fragrant, they are maximally elegant and borne abundantly on the trees. The glossy green leaves that frame those blooms are slightly toothed and alternate on the stems. In the fall the leaves turn brilliant shades of yellow, red and near-purple, before falling from the trees. The combination of alluring bark, gorgeous summer flowers and brilliant fall leaves gives Japanese stewartia four seasons of interest.
Like the camellia, which has similar flowers and leaves, stewartia is a member of the Theaceae or tea family. Its relatives include the all-American Franklinia tree or Franklinia alatamaha, discovered in Colonial America and now extinct in the wild, and the Gordonia, which, depending on species, is native to both the southeastern United States and Asia.
For such a beautiful tree, relatively little is written about the history of stewartia. One or more species must have arrived in Europe from either Asia or southeastern North America sometime before 1753, when the great Swedish taxonomist Linnaeus named the genus in honor of John Stuart, third Earl of Bute. The Earl was an 18h century Scottish nobleman/ botanist, who also served as Prime Minister of England and confidant of King George III. Vilified while Prime Minister, Bute was glorified in horticulture, having been instrumental in the development of the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew. The original “Stuart” of the Earl’s family name has long since been anglicized to “Stewart” in the generic plant name.
Given his bitter experience in politics, it is highly likely that the Earl would rather be remembered for his service to the natural world.
Japanese stewartia has an American cousin, Stewartia ovata or mountain stewartia, which is a little smaller and can be grown as a tree or a multi-stemmed shrub. It is just a bit less showy than its Japanese relative, but still has the camellia-like flowers, The leaves also flame in the fall, but its gray-brown bark does not exfoliate like that of the Japanese species. Still, for smaller gardens, mountain stewartia is an excellent choice.
Another American relative, silky stewartia or Stewartia malacodendron, is similar to mountain stewartia in size and configuration. Silky stewartia’s claim to fame is that its white flower petals surround a center of blue purple stamens and filaments, a dramatic variation on the golden centers of the Japanese stewartia.
Japanese stewartia and its American cousins make excellent specimen trees and also look lovely in part shade, anchoring woodland gardens. If you rush out to buy one in mid-summer, make sure to water thoroughly when you plant and regularly thereafter to get the tree established. Investing in an “alligator bag” that you fill with water and attach to the base of the tree is not a bad idea. It releases moisture slowly, allowing it to penetrate to thirsty roots.
Good local nurseries often carry stewartia, but if you can’t find one in your area, try ForestFarm, 14643 Watergap Rd, Williams, OR 97544; (541) 846-7269; www.forestfarm.com. Print catalog available.