Golden rain tree grows 30 to 40 feet' tall and has a rounded habit. Its foliage creates a tropical effect, with large compound leaves that grow 18 inches long and have deeply cut leaflets. It is an excellent specimen plant. Yellow flowers with narrow petals, similar to forsythia blooms, are produced in 12-inch to 15-inch panicles in July. The flowers are followed by large, bladderlike pods that change from pale green to red and then mature to brown. Fall color varies from yellow to gold and orange-yellow. This tree is marginally hardy in the Chicago area. Native to the Far East, the panicled golden rain tree is one of the last small ornamental trees to flower.