OK- here's my Paulownia story: Paulownia's are the devils own tree. I had two ancient Paulownia's removed from the front yard of our new house in May of '07. I had the roots ground out as deep as the largest grinder would go. The roots shoots that came up that year were horrendous- one every foot covering the entire yard. It was literally a daily chore to keep up with them- I went out every single morning spring through summer to cut them by the HUNDREDS. They were impossible to pull. They came up again equally as bad in '08. In '09 they slowed down a bit on my property but began seeking new areas as I saw them in neighbor yards- not only on the adjoining properties but across the street as well. Spring of '10- three full years since I had the trees taken out- and I was still getting shoots. THREE YEARS! By '11 I only got two or three and was FINALLY able to close the chapter on this horrendous experience. They are one tenacious tree.

Southerngal, I may not be able to help you with your planting seeds, but for those of you that are speaking of invasive qualities, I have had a wonderful experience with a hybrid species of Empress called the Empress Splendor. It has the amazing growth rate of the Tomentosa but does not share the invasive attributes. I purchased them at www.worldtreetech.com and they have been growing amazing for me ever since. You may want to have a look; it is much easier than seeds! Let me know if you have anymore questions!

please stop spraying ANYTHING .. until you ID the problem ... odds are.. whoever made the holes is long gone.. hence the reason you cant find them ... and why anything sprayed now.. is just pollution ... you claim all the leaves getting eaten almost killed the tree.. but then say no such thing happened .. as it came back with gang busters like most weed trees do ... bugs rarely kill their host ... as it would be a form of suicide on some level ... and also.. plagues of bugs come year in and year out ... and rarely is it required that we do anything but complain .... find out if this tree is invasive you your county by calling your county extension office... and if it is.. get rid of it.. it solves all your bug problems... there are so many good trees out there... and never forget.. if you planted it because it was fast to grow.. the rest of the equation is fast to problems.. fast to decline.. and fast to death.. all contemplated in tree years ... i highly doubt the wasps have anything to do with this.. if in fact.. they are wasps ... a pic might get you some relevant info ... ken

Paulownias are definitely invasive/opportunistic around Philadelphia. They were very fashionable to plant in the second half of the 19th century, and we've had a lot of escapees all over the place ever since. (And certainly not just in the cracks - there are tons of them growing in vacant lots, along railroad tracks, etc.) It confused me when I moved here from Los Angeles a few years ago, because I kept seeing trees with lavender/purple flowers that from a distance looked like the jacaranda flowers I was used to - but jacarandas don't grow in this climate. Of course, the leaves and branches look nothing alike, but the flowers are similar in color...and in spring the paulownia flowers tend to pop out first before the leaves show up. Anyway, if you decide to keep it, just keep an eye on the seeds, because that's how it distributes itself everywhere.