Tag: Trees

Sounds very Old English. Yes, it does grow there. As it has for decades, even centuries. If you want to build yourself an authentic English longbow begin by finding a yew which has gone without pruning for several years. Further directions from another source.

This evergreen gives a welcome splash of winter and early spring color when trimmed and pruned and planted in sheltered areas around your home. It serves well as a background to that flowerbed you want in front of the house. Male and female plants give you a choice if you want berry shaped cones with your yew.

Word of caution to suburbanites. Don’t brew the leaves or berries into tea. Well…unless you want a medical emergency and a quick consultation with poison control.

Love. Affection. To take pleasure in.

Skip the hugs, caresses, and kisses. Unless you desire tangled hair, scratched arms, and pitched lips.

I’m talking about a spruce tree. Green year round. Conical shape. Close branches furnishing a hotel with breakfast bar for birds. Light brown cones contrast with deep to medium green (some species with a blue to silver cast) needles.

They grow large, up to 100 feet tall, if they land in the right spot. Dense branches break the wind to protect buildings and soil when planted with companions in long, offset rows.

Add colored lights in December and you have a living Christmas tree to use year after year until the children are grown and out of the house. With a little more yard I’d be glad to host a grouping.

It is neither unique nor common for a national or state/provincial/territorial flag to feature a tree (or a portion). Lebanon and Canada come to mind for nations with the Cedar Tree and Maple Leaf represented. The US state of South Carolina includes a Palm Tree.

Today we’re going further South than the United States. And we’ll include many miles West — to the other side of the International Date Line. On a white background, between vertical bars of green, the Norfolk Pine is depicted on the flag for the Territory of Norfolk Island. I don’t know about your geography expertise, but I needed to consult an atlas to find this external territory of Australia. (It’s located 877 miles due east of Australia and northwest of New Zealand’s North Island)

This is the home of the Norfolk Island Pine. The tree has become a popular evergreen ornamental world wide. In its natural habitat it can reach a height of 200 feet. In other climates, and when grown in a tub (best method in St. Louis) it obtains a more most stature of 3-6 feet. A long lived ornamental it adds a welcome bit of green contrast to the browns of a Midwest winter.

Quick — give a response to the word “Hemlock”.

Did your tongue recoil at the word? Are you thinking poison served to an ancient Greek teacher?

Today I’d like to turn your attention to a larger plant sharing the name. Tsuga canadensis (Canadian hemlock) could be a good addition to a shady portion of your yard — especially if you live in Canada or the northern portions of the United States.

Give the tree a little room and patience. They’ve been known to spread out to 35 feet and stretch upward to 70. Not a good choice near power lines. Your reward will be a pleasant spot of green all year round and seed cones to attract wildlife.

Don’t worry about nibbling on a stray needle or two (or more). The poisonous hemlocks are in the parsley family.

The seasonal reminder came a couple weeks ago. I was visiting a local park and decided to take one of the nature trails for a few hundred yards.

Shhhhhhush. Plop.

I looked around, had a few suspects in mind, but didn’t see anything right away.

A few yards further down the trail I spotted one. Looked up again.

Shhhhhhush. Plop.

That time I saw the culprit. A black walnut. It’s enough for a person to grab their hard hat for a walk in the woods.

This tree, with it’s poised hazardous fruit, lives in St. Louis County.

No black walnut trees featured in the Crystal Springs books. But check out the evergreens and apple trees in Starr Tree Farm and Hiding Places.