This individual is one of a row of tupliptrees along the sidewalk that runs from Library Lawn to Rand Hall. If you walk from the Harold Sterling Vanderbilt statue toward the Rand patio, you will see it on your left just after you cross the major sidewalk from Rand toward the Divinity School.

Tuliptree gets its name from its unusual yellowish-orange flowers.  The distinctive leaves also have a shape that reminds some of tulips as well.  By late summer the flowers have turned into fruits, which are a collection of winged seeds attached to a central stalk.

Tuliptree is the state tree of Tennessee and is a very common tree throughout the state.  It sprouts up rapidly following disturbance, but can also grow to enormous sizes in undisturbed forests.  Large trees can be recognized even in the winter by their very straight trunks and the long, deep furrows in the bark.  This particular tree was chosen for the tour because it has branches close enough to the ground to observe the leaves.