GORDONIA ALATAMAHA — FRANKLIN’S TREE 
In the autumn of 1765 the botanist John Bartram stood on the 
banks of the Alatamaha River in Georgia; he was waiting for a boat 
to ferry him to an Indian trading post on the far shore. Ever alert for 
new specimens, his attention was suddenly fixed by a small spreading 
tree with foliage of dark shining green. This was the Gordonia 
alatamaha, or Franklin Tree, from which are descended all plants 
now in existence. The last wild specimen was seen in 1790. 
His son William wrote of it: 
“We never saw it grow in any other place, nor have I seen 
it growing wild in all my travels ... It is a flowering tree 
of first order for beauty and fragrance of blossom; the tree 
grows fifteen or twenty feet high, branching alternately; . . . the 
flowers are very large, expand themselves perfectly,* are of a 
snow-white colour, and ornamented with a crown or tassel of 
gold-coloured refulgent staminae in their centre ...” 
. In the vicinity of Philadelphia the Gordonia blooms from late July 
until the first frosts, when its leaves turn a warm red-orange; it is 
thus a strikingly ornamental tree at any season. The Cheltenham 
Nurseries offer to the discriminating gardening public healthy plants 
suitable for spring planting. 
Gordonia alatamaha grows easily under proper conditions. It re¬ 
quires sun and a loose well-drained soil. It should be planted in the 
spring. Although its roots grow close to the surface they demand cool 
soil; this can best be affected by placing a mulch of peat moss or leaf- 
mold over the surface of the soil. (Continued on inside back cover) 
3' Bush Gordonia . $8.00 
4' Gordonia . $8.00 
5' Gordonia .$10.00 
Specimen Gordonia .$15.00 
15" 
Gordonia .. 
. $2.50 
2' 
Gordonia .. 
. $3.75 
2' 
Bush Gordonia. 
.. $5.00 
3' 
Gordonia .. 
CHELTENHAM NURSERIES 
CHELTENHAM, PA. 
MOBfl. (•»(«?(NO CO.. QLtMIQC 
