Scientific Name: Ailanthus altissima
Common Name: tree of heaven
Native Range: Northern China
Zone: 4 to 8
Plant type & Form: Tree with loose, open, sometimes graceful form, but is usually seen growing much shorter in urban areas.
Height: 40.00 to 80.00 feet
Spread: 30.00 to 60.00 feet
Bloom Time: June
Bloom Description: Male flowers have an unpleasant odor. Flowers are greenish.
Bark: Smooth pale gray
Fruit: Female flowers produce seeds (twisted samaras) in clusters ripening to reddish-brown
Leaf: Odd-pinnate compound leaves (most often 11-25 leaflets each) tend to give it a certain tropical appearance. Leaflets have large gland-tipped teeth at the base.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Dry to medium
Soil type & pH:
Maintenance: High
Suggested Use: None. Invasive.
Tolerates: Drought, Black Walnut, Air Pollution
Notes: This plant is listed as a noxious weed in one or more Midwestern states and should not be moved or grown under conditions that would involve danger of dissemination. This is the tree featured in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, by Betty Smith (1942).
Identification notes: Leaflets have large gland-tipped teeth at the base; these teeth distinguish it from the sumacs, which also have long compound leaves.
