• The young leaves of T. sinensis (called 香椿 in Chinese) are extensively used as a vegetable in China; they have an onion-like flavour. The fruit, bark, and roots are used in traditional Chinese medicine for a wide variety of conditions. Plants with red young leaves are considered of better flavour than those where the young leaves are green.
• The timber is hard and reddish; it is valuable, used for furniture making. Outside of its native region T. sinensis is valued more as a large ornamental tree for its haggard aspect. It is by far the most cold-tolerant species in the Meliaceae and the only member of the family that can be cultivated successfully in northern Europe.

The young leaves of T. sinensis (called 香椿 in Chinese) are extensively used as a vegetable in China; they have an onion-like flavour. The fruit, bark, and roots are used in traditional Chinese medicine for a wide variety of conditions. Plants with red young leaves are considered of better flavour than those where the young leaves are green.