*Franklinia alatamaha

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*Franklinia alatamaha
FRANKLINIA

Theaceae
Georgia (extinct in the wild)

Location: map coordinates N-12 (northeast of Baker Building; next to gate to parking lot #6B), N 39°11'11'' W 75°32'42''

Planting history: planted 5/1/12. Source: Delaware Nature Society. (Dr. S. Yost, USDA NIFA Capacity Building Grant funds).

Description:
  • deciduous large shrub, or small tree
  • etymology: Franklinia for Benjamin Franklin (1706-90), American statesman; alatamaha for the Altamaha (Alatamaha) River, near where it used to grow
  • in the tea family, which also includes tea, camellia, and stewartia
  • leaves simple, alternate
  • flowers large, white, attractive; with golden stamens. Blooms mid-August to mid-September in Delaware
  • discovered by John and William Bartram, along the Alatamaha River in Georgia in 1765
  • extinct in the wild; believed to have last been seen in the wild ca 1803

*Non-native species (not native to Delaware)

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