Identification: 14 ft Mystery Plant

This is in Tacoma WA and is a very fast grower. It was just one stalk but after being cut completely down to the ground about a year ago (was hollow inside, see pic) now has multiple stalks and stands about 14' high after just four months. At first we thought it was a variety of sunflower but there haven't been any flowers at all. Any ideas?



Thanks

 

Could this giant be Paulownia tomentosa?
Was considering Abutilon theophrasti...but leaves do not appear to be densely hairy, leaf margins not serrate but entire... So I vote for the former.

 

It certainly does resemble a Paulownia tomentosa when compared to online examples. It most definitely fits the behavior of being extraordinarily fast growing and coming back with even more vigor when cut down to the roots!

We could have a match. Thanks for the help and quick reply. It's great to know it'll grow into such an amazing tree.

 

Paulownia.

 

wow, pretty

sorry no useful info

 

Seeded in from a nearby planting. Among rocks is also the situation where I see these come up here. Under more suitable wet summer conditions of eastern US tree is a weed species occurring in numbers and not confined to vicinity of rocks.

Apparently rocks provide enough shelter from summer drought for these to survive the seedling stage, same as with cactus seedlings in southwestern deserts.

 

I'm jealous, having lost 80 of 100 seedlings to damping off this year; they seem really prone to it. Maybe I'll toss a bunch of seed in a pile of dirt covered in rocks next year...can hardly do worse.

 

Re: 14 ft Mystery Plant - Paulownia

Here's another thread on Paulownia, which includes a link to other threads about it.
http://www.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/forums/showthread.php?t=64668&highlight=paulownia

Cutting it back makes the next year's leaves grow larger and seems to prevent flowering (according to what I've read in the various threads on this plant or tree).

The Wikipedia article is pretty interesting. As a tree, its wood is used for surfboards and guitars, and soundboards for several eastern instruments, among other things. It's listed as an invasive species in the southeastern US, yet is being used as a reforestation tree in several countries, as it is a "phyto-remediator, increasing the organic content of degraded soils, processing and filtering contaminants through the uptake of its vascular system, and emitting oxygen into the atmosphere". I thought a lot of trees did that, but the article points out that "Paulownia has the ability to reclaim ecologically stressed and degenerate patches of land relatively quickly. Its root systems run deep and penetrate compacted and contaminated soils which have resulted from industrialized development."

 

OK. I have a question. This tree's species is tomentosa...so where is the furriness, fuzziness, and/or hairiness that this name implies? Having never been up close and personal with Paulownia, I am ignorant of its hirsute qualities. Elucidation awaited!

 

It's not apparent in photos, and I can't speak to mature trees, but the young leaves are covered in fine fuzz, and feel like velvet to the touch....

 

Ah. So there is fuzz involved. And fine fuzz, at that. (Would be an excellent DJ name.)
Thanks for the information, w.s.!

 

If I'm seeing this correctly, the third photo in the first posting shows some very fuzzy very small leaves at the bottom of the plant.