flora, pt. 1
it's not often i express affection for my town. in fact, i often express extreme loathing for it.it's too expensive, overflowing with snotty, over-privileged university students, flooded with over-educated university graduates who compete rabidly for the few interesting and rewarding jobs, and - did i mention - too expensive.
but there are one or two things i do love about CHO, one of which i was reminded of today. this town is blessed with the perfect growing conditions for the most beautiful flowering trees and spring bulbs. the flowering trees are truly my favorite thing in this landscape and every year i promise to walk around town and photograph the trees in full bloom. perhaps writing about them will make me do it this year.
so this is part 1 of my musings on the flowering trees. i will write additional parts as the different types of trees begin to bloom. i think the cherries will be next, then the dogwoods, then the redbuds, and later in the summer, the crape mrytles. can a girl be more lucky?
right now the magnolias are in almost full bloom. they are the first of the flowering trees to bud out, and bloom closely in time with the pear trees (which i care for much less). i believe that the most beautiful magnolia in the world grows in CHO, on the grounds of our venerable university. it most have been planted when mr. j was still living up on his little mountain because it is ENORMOUS.
i think this is a deciduous magnolia (magnolia denudata), as opposed to the evergreen, and more common magnolia grandiflora. the magnolia denudata loses its leaves in the fall and remains bare until after it has bloomed out. the blooms on this magnolia are like giant white dinner plates and their color is luminous cream graduating to green centers. the blooms on the magnolia denudata are similar to those of the magnolia grandiflora (called "southern"), but are a million times more striking and exciting because they bloom on bare branches. our particular denudata must be 50 feet tall with the branches easily stretching out 10 to 15 feet. some of the branches grow just inches above the ground, but begin far up on the trunk - so you can get underneath the tree and be engulfed by its enormity. i LOVE this tree.
sometimes this magnolia is thwarted by a late freeze which turns the still-closed buds to turn brown and fall off, but i don't think that will happen this year!
the blooms on the tulip magnolia, also known as "japanese" or "saucer" magnolia (magnolia soulangiana), equal that of the southern evergreen and deciduous magnolias in beauty (and sometimes size), but the tree's habit is much different than its larger cousin. the branches of the tulip magnolia grow very upright on multiple trunks, not spreading and stretching far and wide. so when they bloom, the trees look like multi-pronged tridents covered in the richest pinky-purple flowers. this tree is shocking to see when it first blooms because the colors are so bold and striking. to me, the tulip magnolia really exclaims the arrival of spring.
the star magnolia (magnolia stellata) is different all together, typically remaining very petite in size and blooming small, pure white or barely pink star-shaped flowers. these blooms have tons of tiny delicate petals, whereas the southern and tulip both have fewer, waxy thick petals. the star magnolia is truly beautiful too, but somehow doesn't capture my attention like the larger varieties of tulip and denudata.
thus concludes flora, pt. 1. thinking about trees in CHO also made me think about one particular tree in a town i truly love. this tree is called the tree that owns itself. i don't really know the history of it, so i will see what the internet will teach me...
posted by bls @ 1:09 PM
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