The first dispute is over the exact identity of the specimen first named by Linnaeus as H. carolina; some contend that it is the same as H. parviflora,[4][5][6] while others say it is the same as H.

[7][8][9] The second dispute is over whether H. monticola is sufficiently distinct from the other species to merit specific recognition or not (with its varietal placing depending on the above question, too).

A phylogenetic study suggests that Halesia is not monophyletic and as a result, the Chinese species Halesia macgregorii has been transferred into a new genus Perkinsiodendron, named after American botanist and Styracaceae expert Janet Russell Perkins.

[5] One fossil endocarp of †Halesia crassa has been described from a middle Miocene stratum of the Fasterholt area near Silkeborg in Central Jutland, Denmark.

[11] Silverbells are popular ornamental plants in large gardens, grown for their delicate pendant flowers in late spring.