To Know A Tree

Weeping Willow Tree of my Childhood .

                 I have come to know a magnificent willow tree. When I say this, I am not only referring to knowing a willow in terms that are merely factual or objective. The knowing of a living kind, I would affirm, is similar to that of loving it.  In both cases what is loved or known transcends mere definition or explanation.  Everyone is called to know creatures uniquely, and when a known and loved creature dies or leaves, a piece of oneself goes with it.  When I moved away to college, I lost a piece of me with that tree. I missed it terribly. I had grown up with it, but I could not return to it since the family house was being sold. This tree had no name, but it held a place in my heart greater than nearly all other living things.

At school, I reminisce on the old Willow whenever I go into my new backyard.  Bright and high the sun sat, as I think of my earliest memory with the tree. Its dense branches created the perfect play set for my brother and me, two young boys in search of adventure. In college classes I have learned how the Willow tree is a part of the genus Salix, which includes about 400 species of trees and shrubs (3); but in the back yard of my childhood I learned how a willow’s limber branches provided a perfect horsewhip for little charioteers. Its shade provided an oasis during hot dry summer afternoons. Often I wonder what it remembers, since that tree saw me grow up. 

Back at school I learn of Salicaceae Salix nigra, the one native willow species to Maryland, better known as the black willow (4). This willow has leaves three to six inches in length with a dark glossy green on top and a lighter shade of green underneath. They are flat, narrow, and have a distinct vein dividing the leaf down the center that comes to an end at the pointed tip. Its bark can is brown to charcoal with distinct ridges and furrows. The branches are orange or brown with tiny cone shaped buds and small green flowers (6). My Willow fits this description well; however, this is not my tree.  On my tree, as I rode imaginary horses  long flexible branches draping to the ground served as my whip. This characteristic is one of a Weeping Willow and the reason I originally became enticed by it. The dense foliage came to the ground about 15 feet from the trunk and continued all 360 degrees around it. Inside the 15 feet radius of this circle the branches stretched up and outward until they met sunlight and began to produce leaves. This natural enclosure allowed my brother and I to get lost in our imaginations for countless hours outside the house.

                  Salicaceae Salix babylonica is native to China and is also known as a Babylon willow (5).  It has been spread across the world for its extrinsic value in parks, yards, and other horticultural establishments. This is my tree. I know the reason my grandfather planted it in our back yard is because my grandmother enjoyed its looks. This fast growing tree reaches 45 feet in height and similar dimensions in width. Like the exiled Jews who released tears and prayers on the Babylon River banks, a Willow survives near moist soil and will shed its leaves to withstand drought(1). I remember gazing upon its thin long leaves and noticing the yellow-green coloration above and creamy green underneath.  The tree is dioecious, meaning it produces male and female flowers that are wind pollinated (9). The intriguing furrows on the gray brown bark sparked interest in my young mind as examined their irregular pattern. At the time, I did not know that this was a characteristic of all weeping willows; I just knew that this tree was extraordinary.

                  As I spend time in my backyard now, I see several different species of trees that I am unfamiliar with. Trees can be very different from one another but each species share common features that are referred to in identifying them. One way to identify a tree is to analyze the leaf. A leaf can be simple or compound. If it is compound then there are many leaflets on one rachis or stem that attaches to the tree. Simple leaves are directly attached to the limb. Trees can also be doubly compound. The leaf pattern can be opposite and line up on the limb, or alternate going outward. If the leaf is smooth then it is entire. If the leaf is jagged with somewhat large teeth it is dentate and serrate if the teeth are small and close. The leaf can be lobed where the width alternates between big and small. A tree can have bundles of needs or needle-like. In some cases the leaf can be scale-like (2). The terminology is essential in identifying trees by a leaf.

                  It intrigues me to ponder on my future children and how they will view the landscape we share. I have grown to value other living kind by plunging myself into the wonders they provoke and exploring the mysteries they offer. Influenced by mentors and friends whose passions for the living world have rubbed off on me, being fascinated with living entities just seems normal.  But this is changing. Sara Rabkin worries about attitudes we cultivate concerning trees and all other living things in the next generation. She remarks, “Our children…will never heal the world, nor…feel compelled to try, if they fail to develop empathy and respect for beauty and diversity…of all life.” This thought frightens me and provokes me to proceed as my mentors have. I agree with Sara when she says “(Children) need opportunities to meet nature head-on…they need encouragement to pay attention and to wonder.” If a child never has the awe striking experience that triggers intimate emotions with other living entities, they would never be encouraged to discover the marvel of nature. This troubling idea every natural historian fears and dedicates their lives to avoid. 

                  A particular tree in my yard is over a picnic table and has a two foot trunk. Looking up I seeits top branches nearly 50 feet in the sky and when I look down I see the immeasurable number of fallen nuts atop the table and ground. Referring back to my leaf guide I know its leaves are alternating as seen below. Also they are simple and slightly lobed.  Fagaceae Quercus nigra is a water oak found exclusively on the east coast. This tree could exist in Texas, Florida, Southern New Jersey, and everywhere in between. I take a moment to notice the leaves vary in shape and size about two to four inches.  Picking up a dark, half inch long acorn from atop the picnic table, I realize this is the tree’s fruit. The fall day is the perfect time for the mature capped acorns to drop; suggesting age because before the second birthday the acorns will not develop. This tree must be somewhat old because the bark has grown from smooth to being ridged and have rough patches as seen in Figure 3 below (8).

                  Out and about in my yard I see two Cupressaceae Juniperus virginiana. Only when looking closely you can notice the eastern red cedars have very small leaves that are scale-like and distinctive light blue berry-like cones as seen in Figure 4 below. I first noticed the fruits in the spring as light green and eventually they turned dark blue over the year. Looking inside the tree I can notice the brown twigs stretching all of the 25 feet it stands. In the past I have seen similar trees of the same species stretch to 60 feet tall. With attention to detail it is noticeable that there are two types of leaves that this tree has; a short four sided leaf or longer needle-like leaf. This tree has more of the longer needles since it is a younger tree (7). This tree reminds me of winter and comforts me as it maintains color in my yard.

                  Throughout my time in my backyard I have grew up and the willow helped me learn how to love other living beings.  I know that particular tree very well. I can remember swinging on it as a young child, trying to climb it but never getting far, and hiding in the limbs. I do not know the trees I have identified as well as the Willow I grew up with, but with time and experiences with these trees I will better know them. Already I have dedicated leisure time to become more familiar with them and knowledgeable about them. Leisure time does not suggest periods of laziness or relaxation, but it means times where we can foster personal interests without worrying about necessities. Aldo Leopold refers to leisure time as a time to develop a hobby. Yet he clarifies “You do not annex a hobby, the hobby annexes you.” This hobby has found me. Through identifying these trees I am singing a willow, one that I cannot visit anymore. Yet I know this tree for its intrinsic value and all that it has given me. I recognize its friendship, celebrate its existence, and cherish the memories I have with it. This tree lives on in me, and I in it. I finally understand what it means to know a weeping willow tree.

- Marshall Keeney

Appendix

 Figure 2 Below: This is the Water Oak found in my yard in Salisbury, MD.

Figure 3 Below: This is the trunk of the Water Oak.

Figure 4 Below: This is the Eastern Red Cedar found in my yard in Salisbury, MD.

Bibliography

1.     Gilman, E. and Watson, D. (2013). Weeping Willow. In University of Florida IFAS Extension. Retrieved October 27, 2014 from http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/st576.

2.     Kundt, J. and Baker, R. (1970). Leaf Key to Common Trees in Maryland. Extension Bulletin 238, 3, 16, 26.

3.     Mabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge.

  

4.     Maryland State Archives. (2014). Maryland At A Glance: Trees. In Maryland Manual On-Line. Retrieved October 27, 2014 from http://msa.maryland.gov/msa/mdmanual/01glance/html/trees.html.

5.     Ohio Public Library Information Network and The Ohio Historical Society. (2014). Weeping Willow. In What Tree Is It?. Retrieved October 24, 2014 from http://www.oplin.org/tree/fact%20pages/willow_weeping/willow_weeping.html.

  

6.   Seiler, J. Jensen, E. Niemiera, A. and Peterson, J.  (2014).Black Willow. In Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation. Retrieved October 21, 2014 from http://dendro.cnre.vt.edu/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=86.

7.     Seiler, J. Jensen, E. Niemiera, A. and Peterson, J. (2014). Eastern Redceadar. In Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation. Retrieved October 21, 2014 from http://dendro.cnre.vt.edu/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=97.

8.     Seiler, J. Jensen, E. Niemiera, A. and Peterson, J.  (2014).Water Oak. In Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation. Retrieved October 21, 2014 from http://dendro.cnre.vt.edu/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=73.

9.     Seiler, J. Jensen, E. Niemiera, A. and Peterson, J.  (2014).Weeping Willow. In Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation. Retrieved October 21, 2014 from http://dendro.cnre.vt.edu/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=131.

Fleischner, T. and Rabkin, S. (2011). Eyes of the World. The Way of Natural History. San Antonio, TX: Trinity University Press.

Leopold, A. (1953). A Sand County Almanac: With Essays on Conservation from Round River. New York, NY: Ballantine Books.