Question
I'm looking for a deer resistant, extremely fast growing tree (without alot of disease liabilities) to plant along my driveway in Virginia. I am considering a Royal Empress Tree (paulowina), and I wanted to get your opinion on the suitability of this tree for my climate and application. I have a very long driveway in the country, so shedding of branches and leaves isn't a problem for me. I really want to create alot of drama along the driveway quickly (not 5 years from now), and we have alot of deer in this area so I'm concerned about saplings being eaten. I also don't want to spend a fortune. I'm open to suggestions and your thoughts. Thank you!

Answer
You should not have any problem with deer since the tree are planted before leaf out and by the time the trees leaf out other plants on the deer diet will be green also.  

There may be a problem with this tree with the weather. Cold weather may cause some dieback.
I would suggest you contact the local office of the Va. State Forestry agency and ask one of their Foresters about paulowina trees in your area and its success rate. Here is a link to their web page where you can get the contact information for your County office.

http://www.dof.virginia.gov/info/my-county.shtml