My Paulownia tomentosa (Princess or Empress tree)..........

I picked up a small tree last March from a friend in north Florida and planted it out in our field a month later....
It was 18 inches high and weak stemmed...so I shook the trunk daily to stimulate strength and now it is 7 feet tall with a 1.5 inch diameter trunk......btw....stem shaking to increase tensile strength really works.......especially with my tomatoes.....

Anyway, when I was a kid they used to advertise this tree as the worlds fastest growing tree....(on the back of Parade magazine)......I used to stare at the photo in a state of awe.........now, a few decades later, I stare at it live everyday when I water it.........This is my kind of plant - it responds to care and grows fast.....I am shooting for 20 feet of growth in 2 years........
Hey we all need goals.........and besides, down here we need SHADE..........FAST.........