Granddaddy Graybeard Tree

The lovely Granddaddy Graybeard Tree (Chionanthus virginicus) is native to the southeastern US. I've never heard it called anything else, but in researching a bit about the tree for this article, I saw other common names for it, such as: White Fringetree, Fringe Tree, Old Man's Beard, and Grancy Graybeard Tree.


The photo above shows what the tree looks like from a distance when it is in bloom. That tree is in my neighbor's yard. I have a tree on my property, too, but it isn't so full and pretty as my neighbor's tree.

In late spring, this North American native tree becomes nearly covered with showy, fringe-like flowers that cascade downward like the white beard of a wise old man, inspiring the name Grancy Greybeard. The flowers also add a lovely, potent, sweet perfume fragrance to the air about when the dogwoods are beginning to fade. ^[4]


The blooms of the tree look like white fringe when they first appear. All of the closeup shots of the flowers are on the tree in my front yard.


As the flowers begin to wither, the snow-white color fades to a pale yellow, as seen in the photo on the left-side, below. The photo at below-right was made at night, when the blooms were still fresh, for more contrast. I posted that photo to my Flickr stream a few years ago, and it now appears in search engines.


Finally, here are two photos of another tree, in a different neighbor's yard than the first photo. These trees help make the neighborhood a pretty place after the dogwood trees have stopped blooming!