Halesia tetraptera var. tetraptera – Carolina Silverbell

One of North America’s most floriferous trees but virtually unknown to the home gardener. Often grows in a multistem form with branches that are laden with large white, bell-shaped flowers. They are particularly showy against the sort of dark background provided by a woodland edge, dark-colored house or evergreens. The bark is attractively striped in shades of brown and gray. An Appalachian Mountain understory species, Silverbell is not indigenous to the Catskills but grows very well here, in fact it’s hardy to zone 4.