The Tamarind - Tamarindus indica, is most easily identified by the combination of pinnate leaves, blackened trunk areas, zig zag limbs and variable sized and colored fruit. The Tamarind is primarily an evergreen or semi deciduous tree that can reach heights of 65-100 feet or more. The diameter in the United States tends to only reach 5 feet while in it's native range it has been reported as large in diameter as 25 feet. It was introduced originally from tropical portions of Africa and India and has escaped cultivation and has established itself in Southern Florida.
Meet A Tree
Have you ever wondered about the trees around you? What are their names? What makes them each unique? What resources do they provide? How do they benefit our lives? Arundel Tree Service's Meet A Tree blog was created to help you "Meet A Tree", learn about how every tree is as unique and individual as you and I!
Wednesday, March 16, 2022
Tamarind - Tamarindus indica
Wednesday, March 2, 2022
Quaking Aspen - Populus tremuloides
The Quaking Aspen - Populus tremuloides - is also called the Trembling Aspen, Golden Aspen or Mountain Aspen. With the smallest of breezes the leaves will flutter hence it's name. When fluttering the leaves even making an audible sound which would explain why the Onondagas called it the "nut-kie-e" which means noisy leaf. This tree has a very remarkable native range covering a majority of the Northern portion of the continent, ranging from New Foundland South to Delaware in the East and along the Coast of Alaska and British Columbia running South through the Rocky Mountains. Although it is not found in the South it does have one of the widest distributions of any tree in North America. It can be grown throughout hardiness zones 1-7. It is often times one of the first trees to appear after a Forest Fire. It is a fast grower often gaining 24 inches in a single season. Aspen wood Is used to make a variety of items such as wooden toys, tongue depressors, popsicle sticks, clothes pins, crates and even for paper pulp.
Tuesday, March 1, 2022
Horse Chestnut - Aesculus hippocastanum
The Horse Chestnut - Aesculus hippocastanum, is only native to a very small area of Mountains between Greece and Albania- it was not discovered/recorded until 1596. Once discovered it was rapidly planted and spread almost all over Europe in the early 1600's, then later by the early colonists of North America. It is a very common street tree from Ontario to Virginia. In the West it's spread ranges from British Columbia down through New Mexico, Utah and Colorado. It is one of the more common street trees in the United States and has naturalized in most regions. Growing to heights of 50-75 feet at maturity, this tree can live upwards of 300 years so when planted correctly it can be considered a permanent addition to most landscapes. It is recommended to be planted in hardiness zones 4-7
Monday, February 28, 2022
Sweetgum - Liquidambar styraciflua
The Sweetgum - Liquidambar styraciflua, is a deciduous tree that reaches heights of up to 132 feet. It is most easily identified by it's palmately lobed, almost star shaped leaves and spiked fruiting balls (which are even called some not so nice names when an unknowing party steps on one). Generally Sweetgums grow in a upright fashion, with a single erect trunk with little branching on the lower 1/2, this is especially true when grown in woodland or forest areas. The Sweetgum is a member of the Altingiaceae family, this family has members in North and Central America, Southeast Asia and Turkey - it includes 2 genera and 13 species, only 1 that is native to the United States. The Sweetgum is also called to as Gum, Gum Ball, Monkey Ball, or Sweet Gum.
Friday, February 25, 2022
Black Willow - Salix nigra (also called Swamp Willow or Gooding Willow)
The Black Willow - Salix nigra (also called Swamp Willow or Gooding Willow) is a moderately large deciduous tree that can reach heights of 60-100 feet tall. It prefers wet soils, moist bottom lands, swamps, marshlands or waters edge locations and is not tolerant of shade. The Black Willow is often short trunked with branches beginning low to the ground, often leaning or crooked in form. Black Willow is a common tree in the Eastern United States, it is best known for it's ability to control erosion and ability to sprout new growth from broken branches lodged along river/stream banks.
Thursday, February 24, 2022
Corkwood - Leiterneria floridana
The Leitneriaceae Family currently only contains one single species, the Corkwood Leiterneria floridana. The Corkwood is a very sporadically distributed species found only in Northern Florida, Southeastern Texas, Eastern Arkansas and the far Southeastern region of Missouri. It is most commonly found growing in swamp areas, depressions, ponds, roadside ditches or bordering tidal marshes. It is easily recognized in it's native regions by it's very upright form combined with elliptical leaves, catkins, and tan colored lenticels found within the red-brown bark. The Leitneriaceae florida is included on The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as a "Near Threatened/Lower Risk" species because of its very small number (limited by a very small native range), thought they do not show a significant decline in the population. Leiterneria floridana was only first discovered in 1835, in the saline marshes of Florida where the Apalachicola River empties into the Gulf of Mexico.
Tuesday, February 22, 2022
Strawberry Tree - Arbutus unedo
The "Strawberry" Tree - Arbutus unedo, is a small tree in the Ericaceae family, that is native to the Mediterranean Region & Western Europe including Portugal, Spain, Morocco, Algeria, Eastern Italy, Croatia, Greece, Cyprus, Lebanon, Ireland, and Southern France. It is a large evergreen shrub or small tree only reaching an average height of only 30 feet, with very few found as tall as 50 feet. It is sometimes called the Cane Apple, Irish or Killarney Strawberry Tree due to it's numbers in Ireland.