Quiver Tree, Namibia

Trees (I-Z) October 14, 2020 Peter Y. Chou WisdomPortal.com

Japanese Zelkova, Osaka (1000 years-old)

Preface: On October 9, 2020, I didn't fall asleep right away when hitting the bed. Forgot how to do the yellow to cyan radial color gradient in Photoshop. Thought about it while in bed going to sleep. It took half an hour, and I had to visualize Little Bo Peep at some fence as sheep jumped over. Must counted to 50+ before I fell asleep. Told my friend Ann about it. She emailed Oct. 11, "My own method for falling asleep is to pick a category (e.g., trees) and go through the alphabet: alder, birch, cherry, Douglas fir, elm, etc. Usually I get stuck at I or Q, my mind starts to wander, and sleep sets in." I tried this method while sleeping, but got stuck at the letters I, K, N, Q, U, V, X, and Z. On awakening, looked up two books in my library— Herbert Zim's Trees (1956) & Taylor's Guide to Trees (1961). Below are 24 trees with their Latin names described in these two books and Wikipedia— "getting to know you".

I

Ilex: (Aquifoliaceae), Holly family, used in Christmas decorations and cards. Ironbark: (Eucalyptus sideroxylon), Australia, 80 ft high, leaves narrowly lance-shaped Ironwood: (Ostrya), Hop Hornbeam, wood is hard & heavy, used for tool handles & mallets Ivory Palm Tree: (Phytelephas), hard white endosperm seeds, resemble elephant ivory

K

Katsura Tree: (Cercidiphyllum), native to Japan & China, round leaves heart-shaped at base. Kentucky Coffee Tree: (Gymnocladus dioicus), bitter drink from its seeds, leaves are large, twice compounded, with oval, pointed widely spaced leaflets, 10-14 pinnate, Kurrajong: (Brachychiton), Bottle Tree, native to Australia, evergreen grows to 50 ft

N

Nectarine Tree: (Prunus Persica nucipersica), 16 ft high, nectarines in summer. Northern Red Oak: (Quercus rubra), state tree of New Jersey, lives to 400 years, 125 ft high with 20 to 39-inches trunk in diameter, 7 to 9-pointed lobes, used for furniture Norway Maple: (Acer platanoides), leaves are opposite, palmately lobed with 5 lobes, wider than Sugar Maple, yields milky juice when leaf stem is broken, Sugar Maple does not Nyssa: ( Nyssoideae), Tupelo family, wood is used extensively by artistic woodcarvers, especially for carving ducks. Tupelo Trees produce a very light, mild-tasting honey.

Q

Quaking Aspen: (Populus tremuloides), the state tree of Utah, one of the smaller Poplars, leaves nearly round, with small rounded teeth, most widely distributed tree in North America. Queen Palm: (Syagrus romanzoffiana), or cocos palm, native to South America, and a popular garden tree, Grows to 49 ft, with pinnate leaves having as many as 494 leaflets. Quercus: (Quercus alba), White Oak, is one of the preeminent hardwoods of eastern and central North America, Great White Oak in Basking Ridge, New Jersey, was 600 years old (2016), 100 feet tall, branches over 130 feet side to side. One limb weighed 8,000 pounds. Quiver Tree: (Aloidendron dichotomum), or kokerboom, is a tall, branching species of succulent plant, indigenous to Southern Africa and Southern Namibia. The stems repeatedly branch into two as the plant grows. Used to film 2001: A Space Odyssey.

U

Ulmus: A genus of 18 mostly deciduous Elm species. Leaves are alternate, with simple, single- or, most commonly, doubly serrate margins, usually asymmetric at the base and acuminate at the apex. Sapsucker woodpeckers have a great love of young elm trees. Umbellularia: (Umbellularia californica), is a large hardwood tree native to coastal forests of California. Also called California bay laurel & Oregon myrtle. Leaves are entire and lance-shaped about 1.2-3.9 in. long. Native Americans used leaves to treat many ailments. Umbrella Magnolia: (Magnolia tripetala) is so called because large (12-20 inches), smooth, bright green leaves surround each flower like an umbrella. Creamy white flowers (4-8" wide). Utah Juniper: (Juniperus osteosperma), is a shrub or small tree reaching 3-6 meters tall. It is native to the southwestern United States. Leaves are arranged in opposite decussate pairs or whorls of three. Native Americans used the bark for beds, and ate the cones in cakes.

V

Viburnum: (Viburnum lantana), or wayfaring tree, native to central, southern and western Europe. It is a deciduous shrub or small tree growing to 13-16 ft. tall. Leaves are oval. Virginia Pine: (Pinus virginiana), s a medium-sized tree, often found on poorer soils from Long Island in southern New York. Also called Jersey Pine. The short, twisted, dull needles & sharp, prickly cones are characteristic. Little value as timber, and is used mainly for pulp. Vitex: (Vitex agnus-castus), is a genus of flowering plants in the family Lamiaceae. Common names "chaste tree". Vitex was name used by Pliny the Elder for Vitex agnus-castus. Derived from Latin vieo, meaning to weave, a reference to the use of Vitex agnus-castus in basketry.

X

Xylosma: (Xylosma hawaiiense), is a genus of flowering plants in the willow family, Salicaceae. It contains around 100 species of evergreen shrubs and trees commonly known as brushhollies, xylosmas, or, more ambiguously, "logwoods". Leaves are alternate, simple, entire or finely toothed, 0.79-3.94 inches long. Main use as hedge and topiary plants among gardeners in desert and chaparral climates.

Z

Zelkova: (Zelkova serrata), is a genus of six species of deciduous trees in the elm family Ulmaceae, native to southern Europe. They vary in size from shrubs (Z. sicula) to large trees up to 115 ft. tall (Z. carpinifolia). The Japanese Zelkova (Zelkova serrata) is vase-shaped when young, rounded with age, often umbrella-like. grows to about 70 ft in a century. Leves sharply toothed, tapering at the tip.