Our Handkerchief Tree

We have a Handkerchief Tree in our garden, and one of my great pleasures is watching its yearly changes, which happen so quickly.

Other names for this tree include The Dove Tree, The Pocket Handkerchief Tree, and The Ghost Tree.

The genus, Davidia involucrate, is named after Father Armand David, known as Père David. He was a French Franciscan missionary.

Father David first described the tree in 1869. At the time, the famed naturalist was exploring China. It was an 11-year expedition. During this time, he also discovered the Giant Panda, Ailuropoda melanoleuca.

Ernest ‘Chinese’ Wilson first introduced the Handkerchief Tree to the United Kingdom in 1904. He was plant-hunting through China on the commission of the famous London nursery, James Veitch & Sons.