Abstract: The variation of leaf morphological and physiological characteristics among five different provenances of Cyclocarya paliurus seedlings were compared. The results showed that the variation of leaf morphological characteristics was not significant among the five provenances. However, there were significant differences in Pn, ΦPSII, LSP and CE among the provenances. Concerning the provenance of Huangshan in Anhui province and Ganzhou in Jiangxi province, the ability of seedling leaf water-keeping balance was normal, water-holding ability was better than others. However, the provenance of Kunming in Yunnan province, leaf water-keeping balance ability was low and water-holding was normal. The provenance from Jiujiang in Jiangxi province and Liping in Guizhou province, leaf keeping water balance ability was normal, while water-holding ability and the ability of bioplasm enduring from water-losing were worse than the others. Comprehensive appraisal showed that the provenance of Ganzhou in Jiangxi province, Huangshan in Anhui province and Kunming in Yunnan province were superior to the others.