Princess Tree

Description:

Princess tree was introduced into the U.S. as an ornamental and landscape tree around 1840. Now naturalized in the eastern U.S. and is also grown on the west coast. Native to China where historical records describe its medicinal, ornamental, and timber uses as early as the third century B.C. It was cultivated centuries ago in Japan where it is valued in many traditions. Recently it has also been grown in plantations and harvested for export to Japan where its wood is highly valued. (Encyclopedia of Life)

Habitat:

Disturbed, scrub area ... never seen anything like this growing wild in Mississippi. It has the look of something native to a semi-tropical area.

Notes:

Original posting said: What is this? It's behind a restaurant, commercial district. To give you an idea of the size, the leaves are a foot across and the yellow flowers at the bottom of the frame, when you click on the photo, are partridge peas. The top of the plant (tree?) shows signs of rapid growth.