One of the trees that the late J.C. Raulston cherished, and hoped to see become more widely planted is the Asian (China, Japan, Korea) native, Euscaphis japonica, commonly called the Korean sweetheart tree. This little-known genus consists of only two species, and in 2017, one taxonomist proposed eliminating the genus altogether, and moving it into the genus, Staphylea. More recent taxonomic studies, however, retains the genus Euscaphis as valid. While the flowers on this small tree aren’t anything to write home about, the seed pods are quite stunning, as you can see by the specimen in our parking lot. Nurserymen wanting to produce it have thrown up their hands in frustration because the seed are usually not viable. It seems that you need more than one clone growing nearby to obtain viable seed. Hardiness is Zone 6a-8b, at least.
Lovely!