Dillenia turbinataVietnamese Dillenia

Dillenia turbinata is a bold-foliaged evergreen tree of the humid subtropical forests of southern China and Indochina. Its leaves are the feature: very large, leathery and strongly corrugated along parallel veins, glossy dark green, and held in dense terminal rosettes that give the crown real visual weight.

Large fragrant flowers with pink-red petals and a boss of yellow stamens open in spring, but the tree is specified mainly for the year-round architecture of its foliage.

Specifications

• Height10 to 20 metres
• Width6 to 10 metres
• Native toSouthern China and Indochina
• FoliageVery large, leathery, strongly ribbed obovate leaves with toothed margins, glossy dark green; evergreen
• Growth rateModerate

Conditions

• SoilPrefers deep, moist, well-drained soils rich in organic matter
• LightFull sun to partial shade
• WaterModerate to high; needs reliable moisture and is not drought-tolerant
• ClimateThrives in humid tropical and warm subtropical regions

Additional Features

• FlowersLarge fragrant spring flowers with pink-red petals and a mass of yellow stamens
• FruitRounded fleshy fruit following the flowers
• FormDense rounded crown built from rosettes of very large leaves
• UsesIdeal as a shade and feature tree for parks, large gardens and humid tropical civic planting
• SpacingPlant 8 to 10 metres apart for grouped or avenue planting
• Low MaintenanceMinimal pruning; the leaf litter is coarse and is best kept off paving and pool surrounds
• Pest ResistanceGenerally resilient

Vietnamese Dillenia is a foliage tree first, and it gives a humid-climate park a scale of leaf that few other species can.