Tetradium daniellii Seeds | Evodia
LATIN NAME: Tetradium daniellii
COMMON NAME: Bee Bee Tree
Plant Profile
Known to gardeners as Bee Bee Tree, Tetradium daniellii is a generous, easy tree, native to korea and southwestern China. Bee bee tree is a fine, white-flowered, honey tree of warm gardens, and its large, flat heads of small, white, fragrant flowers are one of great bee trees. Open, round-headed tree carries pinnate, fresh-green leaves, and broad, flat heads of many small, white, fragrant flowers open through summer, pulling in bees from all around. Tree is famous for way bees work it through season, and it is a generous, easy tree of sunny garden. The ratio of effort to reward here is about as good as gardening gets.
Science & Biotechnology
Bee-bee tree is a close relative of Evodia rutaecarpa, the source of wu zhu yu — one of the ‘hot’ drugs of Chinese medicine — and shares the genus’s characteristic alkaloids evodiamine and rutaecarpine, which show thermogenic, vasodilatory and anti-inflammatory activity in laboratory studies (evodiamine is even investigated as a capsaicin-like TRPV1 ligand). The drug proper is a potent, professionally used herb; the ornamental tree is gentle by contrast, blooming in high summer when little else does and drawing pollinators in clouds.
Within the Tetradium group, Tetradium daniellii is of continuing interest to researchers working on plant diversity, seed biology and the selection of improved garden forms. Bee bee tree has a steady and growing place in plant science, and it has been studied for its fine, nectar-rich flowers and its place among honey trees. Raising it from seed today is a matter of ordinary good practice rather than specialist skill.
Uses & Benefits
In the garden, Bee Bee Tree earns its place in borders, containers and mixed plantings, and it also rewards growers who raise plants for cutting, drying or kitchen use. Bee bee tree is grown for flowers and the honey. Broad, flat heads of white, fragrant flowers open through summer, and they are one of great bee trees, giving bees a long, generous season of the nectar. Tree is a fine, easy addition to garden, park and apiary, and open, round-headed habit gives a fine, fresh green look. It takes hold quickly and asks for no special treatment from then on.
Tetradium fruit, Wu Zhu Yu, is a major Chinese warming herb for cold headaches and digestive discomfort, its alkaloids evodiamine and rutaecarpine intensively studied; the bee-bee tree form is also one of the best late-season pollinator trees.
Growing from Seed
Bee Bee Tree is one of those generous plants that come along well from seed. Use a fine, free-draining seed compost, scatter the seed evenly, cover it lightly and hold it just moist in good light. Transplant the sturdiest seedlings to their permanent spots and let them develop without disturbance.
Our Take
Within its genus it stands out for garden reliability. It grows as a generous, easy tree, so its place in the garden is easy to plan. It is generous with beginners and their occasional misjudgements.
Related Reading
Gardeners who grow Bee Bee Tree often pair it with these related subjects: