Solved Sussex plant ID

Hi all, I visited a friend in West Sussex yesterday, he is a very active 88 yr old. He and his wife live in a sheltered accommodation complex but he likes to help maintain the grounds. Unusually he has come across this plant and cannot ID it. The leaf is about 8" across and the petioles are covered in fine hairs/fur. The plant is about 3' tall. I thought it might have come from bird seed. Hope the images are ok.

Our first thought was a seedling Catalpa, but not sure.

Edit: Sorry, for some reason first two pictures are horizontal and should be vertical.

Thanks

Blackstart

 

It does look a bit like the yellow leaved version of Catalpa.
But just wondering if it looks more like Paulownia, but looks a bit yellow.

 

Agree Paulownia tomentosa.

Note leaves are opposite.
Leaves hairy on both surfaces.
Petioles are also hairy and can be sticky when young.


Have turned first pic.

 

Hi, thanks for the replies. Yes Paulownia looks a possibility although I'm not sure there is one in the local area to have seeded. They do grow a a rapid pace though. This plant, I suspect, will have germinated this spring; I think he would have noticed it if it had been there any longer. I'll phone him and he can get his tree ID books out.

Blackstart

 

Looks like it has been cutback at some point and regrown.
Could possibly be from last year.

 

There are very few trees in UK with leaves that size and shape.

Catalpa leaves are in 3's ..so can be ruled out...see pics below

 

I tend to think that a self sown Catalpa is very unlikely any way.
To my knowledge it doesn't set viable seed in the UK. My Catalpa produces leaves in threes on some stems but just in pairs (opposite),on other stems.

Having said that a self sown paulowania seems unlikely, just think it might have been planted at some point, by somebody.

 

Well thanks for all of your replies. If Silver Surfer thinks it is a Paulownia, then that is good enough for me. Her plant knowledge is outstanding. Thanks also to you Pete for your excellent posts.

Blackstart

 

I'm going to have to contradict you I'm afraid - self sown Paulownia is highly likely and common in the area of flowering trees. They produce abundant quantities of viable seed here in the UK, it germinates easily and natural selection takes care of the rest. The seed is very small so easily transported by wildlife, either in their coats or in their poop. At Oxfords Botanic Gardens their twenty metre Paulownia would produce forests of seedlings every spring.

 

longk that is interesting to hear.
We had a Paulownia...Foxglove tree...fab flowers/loved it.......yes masses of seed.
But never found any that had germinated.
Maybe soil conditions were not right.
Read that.....The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs). The plant is self-fertile