We have a few trees near our property that always attract my attention. It might have been planted there by the previous owner of the land. This is not a common tree in our area, maybe just an introduced species. At the start of the dry season in March, it sheds off most of its leaves that photos somehow resemble autumn against the clear blue tropical sky. I always go there because birds love to frolic in its branches, and because there are no leaves, they are very conspicuous for the camera.
This season i was late going there, although still at the peak of our dry season. I had a different kind of excitement because i saw it in a different way. There are already flowers and young fruits. The flowers are lovely, yellowish with brown margins. It now intrigues me and i searched for it when i got home, turned out to be already a common tree elsewhere, Gmelina arborea. It is used for light furnitures and uses other than timber because of its light weight. And for a bit of important information, in India it is called 'Kumizh tree' and when burnt yields the whitest possible ash. That is the reason this ash is one ingredient in the semi solid white ochre used in drawing the very ancient 'cave paintings' as old as 3,000 to 5,000 years or more, found in the dense forests of Tamilnadu, India.
a deciduous tree at the start of the dry season in Feb to March
the branches starting to flower and produce fruits, as well as new shoots in April
flowers fallen to the ground
a flower with a mature fruit
For Two Questions Meme: 1. Do you have a particular tree or plant you are so attracted with in your vicinity?
2. Why do you think are your reasons of being particularly attracted to it?
Hello darling!!! What a strange and wonderful tree! It's got quite the history. Looks like a beautiful tree. I'm not one to cut down established plants especially if they're doing well. I don't understand people sometimes....they just cut everything down without giving themselves a year to evaluate this incredible trees. It's incredible what each mature tree offers. For this particular one, birds perch because they have a look out. History, in more ways than one, also comes to mind:) Our oak trees are 100 years old!!! My grandparents were just kids back in 1913. I can't even imagine.
ReplyDeleteHi Kreesh, last time it was dearest friend, now it is darling, haha, i guess i should address you with hi sweetheart! This tree doesn't give shade, but i love it because the birds love it, and for its beautiful flowers. I remember your old grandparents place that you visited with the particular plant that appears again and again. Have you visited it lately, is the old plant still there? I guess you should take a visit, maybe there are other birds there too.
DeleteThat's a really nice tree..and no.. not really attached to any plants as we live in an apartment.
ReplyDeleteDominique @Dominique's Desk
What kind of fruit is it? How does it taste? It looks like a prune, but crunchy. I love so many trees and flowers. I am very attracted to fruit trees. I think they are amazing from flowers to fruit.
ReplyDeleteReasons why I love flowers is that I like to see them bloom. I like to color the gardens with vibrant cheers.
This is actually not a fruit tree, but a forest tree, for timber! I just put the photo to complement the flower. Fruits are not eaten by humans, i don't know if birds eat them.
DeleteI always appreciate your enthusiasm for plants! And for this tree no less. Sometimes looking at things in a new way can do that. It is a neat tree. I've never heard of it before so I guess it does not grow in my area. A pretty fruit too. I like the info about the white ash too.
ReplyDeleteIt may be passion fruit from the look of it. Anyways do check before you eat it.
ReplyDeleteNot every fruit can be eaten, this is a forest tree. A passion fruit is borne by a passion fruit vine, haha! Don't worry about me, i know my horticulture!
DeleteI like the flowers....I love flowering trees and have planted several in the garden.
ReplyDeleteA nice write up, Kalantikun. I think that we call this tree a 'beechwood.' I am not sure where it grows good but I do know that it grows fast and so it is a cheap and yet strong wood to use for furniture that will be painted.
ReplyDelete1. Do you have a particular tree or plant you are so attracted with in your vicinity?
I like azaleas. I also like the Texas Bluebonnets. For trees, I would say the Southern Cypress.
2. Why do you think are your reasons of being particularly attracted to it?
-- The azalea bushes are the prettiest when in in bloom.
-- The Texas Bluebonnet is the Texas State Flower that grows wild in the fields in spring. I love to be driving through fields of bluebonnets.
-- We have a cypress tree in our front yard. It has grown from three feet to now thirty feet in the 13 years we have lived here. I love it's symetry and the knees that spring forth from it's root system. Google "cypress knees" to see what I am talking about.
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Hi Jim thanks for your effort answering my two questions. I love azaleas too, we purposely visited the Blue Mountains in Sydney for the Azalea Festival.
DeleteAnd yes, i know what cypress knees are even before you mentioned it. The problem is i haven't seen it yet in person. Bluebonnets, i only see this year from blogs. Thanks Jim.
Your guest tree has lovely flowers and I love that they are orange. Is the fruit edible? Thanks for joining OYGIF again.
ReplyDeleteNo Maria, its fruits are not edible. Thanks for hosting the meme and your visit here.
DeleteBeautiful! The shape of the flower is very interesting and I just love the colour.
ReplyDeleteWhat beautiful flowers that tree has! Great colour. The tree in my neighbourhood that always fascinates me is a Colvillea reacmosa which grows in a neighbour's yard a little further down the road. It's just coming into bloom right now and looks fantastic.
ReplyDeleteHi Andrea, I found you again. I moved. But my old link directs visitors to the new site. Right now my favorite wild bushes would be mountain laurel and azalea. But in my garden I like the butterfly bush... Because of the beautiful flowers and what they attact. Last year they attracted may butterflies and the hummingbird hawk moth... I thought it was a hummingbird at first. Glad I found you!
ReplyDeleteYour tree is lovely, Andrea. The flowers are so pretty. I like flowering trees, including dogwood, flowering crabapples, and magnolias. I also enjoy trees that show orange or red fall color. Have a happy day!
ReplyDeleteBeth
What beautiful shades of orange to have in a garden!
ReplyDeleteso pretty blossoms! thanx :)
ReplyDeleteI adore the Shagbark Hickory tree (Carya ovata) because it is a gigantic tree, native to our area, and therefore a vital part of our local working ecosystem. As an organic gardener and habitat restorationist, I always want to make sure these majestic trees are preserved, and also planted. They have very tasty nuts, too, by the way.
ReplyDeleteI also love, in particular, Serviceberries (any in the Amelanchier) family. They bloom so very early, and so are an important nectar/pollen source for bees. Plus they make beautiful blue/purple fruit for birds in the fall.
I love your blog and am so happy to find people, so very far away, who think of trees as necessary, not merely as "window decorations" around an empty lawn or an expensive house. Peace!
I love the 2 tone colour of the flowers of this tree. To answer your question:
ReplyDelete1. I am attracted to the Flame of the Forest Tree (Delonix regia)
2. A lot of my childhood memories is associated with this tree.
That is an interesting tree. I would love to see the white ash.
ReplyDeleteI have a tree in our front that is just as intriguing. I'm always watching and documenting the changes. Mostly I just watch in awe.
Aloha :)