Happy Friday!
Today I'm talking about trees. Most of us have them in our garden or nearby. Do you have a fondness for any kind of tree? Or maybe there is one you don't like?
I don't like sweetgum trees. Mostly I don't like them because there is a park near my mother's house that I love to walk but the there are so many prickly seed balls on the path that I'm afraid I will fall and get hurt.
Apparently I'm not the only person that doesn't care for this tree. I just read an article entitled, "The Most Dangerous Tree in the Suburbs". Although the balls produce food for finches and other small birds, I wonder if it's worth it. Each ball only has 2 seeds in it. You can read the article here.
However, there are plenty of folks who think the sweet gum is magnificent and some articles on defending the tree. Here's one article you can check out.
I'm always happy with my Pee Gee Hydrangea Tree. It is manageable and blooms from the end of July into the fall.
here's a photo when it was young:
Probably the most surprising tree in my adulthood is the Tulip Tree. In summer, I spent a lot of time at Girl Scout camps when I was a teen. I taught kids how to identify certain trees by their leaves including the tulip tree.
Bit G.S. camp begins after the school year. I was shocked when I visited her home a few years ago and saw her Tulip Tree in full bloom. It was magnificent. The tree was full of cup shaped flowers and I must have taken a dozen or more photographs of it. Those photographs are long gone but just imagine a tree full of these blooms:
It enchanted me at the time and I wish I had the space to have on in my garden. The tree blooms April to June which is why I never saw the flowers.
What is your favorite tree?
Have a wonderful weekend!
We have had sweet gums on a couple of properties when we lived in south Texas. My husband hates them for the mowers! We used to be surrounded by pines when we lived in the San Jacinto National forest, and now we only have crape myrtles (which we love) here in our far north Texas yard. When I was growing up in northeastern Oklahoma, I loved the tall cottonwood trees that grew nearby, but we did not like the elm trees because they always had bag worms. I love maples and Bradford pears, and of course the dogwood trees that grew in the wild. I love trees in general, but my husband doesn't miss raking the leaves!
ReplyDeleteYears ago we had a Peachcot in front of our house in Colorado. I loved that tree. It was broad and full of glossy leaves. It gave great shade, it was full of the hum of bees in the spring, and the fruit was a bonus. I would have loved the tree even if there was no fruit. Currently I love the Cutleaf weeping Birch in our yard. It not in the best spot but I can see it through my kitchen window and love to watch it in the wind.
ReplyDeleteWe planted a larch in our yard. It is so beautiful through the seasons. It drops its soft needles in the fall , after they have turned a brilliant gold. The tree is so large now that these fallen needles make a soft mulch for my garden. In spring they bud bright spring green, and it’s fun to watch them develop. During the summer I enjoy the swishing sound the wind makes blowing through the larch.
ReplyDeleteThat tulip tree is gorgeous; I am tempted by several types of flowering trees which I have no space for.