# The Doper Arboretum (or: your favorite tree?) **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 11, 2007, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456 "2007-03-11T05:08:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/1 "2007-03-11T05:08:51Z")
Mine is the dendroidal heart of West Valley College in Saratoga, Ca. ( [My favorite tree @ photobucket.com](http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v474/-dc-/My%20Favorite%20Tree/)) It’s a coast live oak that has to be a couple of hundred years old. Right at the main branching, there’s a hollow with a perennial beehive. Before they put the fence around it, you could stand underneath and watch the workers coming and going; the outbound workers making a line out to the nearest pollen source, and the returning sisters hovering about–waiting for a chance to return to the colony. As a friend said, cool trees are cool. What are your favorites? ---
**Author:** ![John\_Carter\_of\_Mars](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/2bfe46/32.png) [@John\_Carter\_of\_Mars](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Carter_of_Mars)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/2 "2007-03-11T05:35:59Z")
The [Royal Palm](http://www.ipanema.com/botanico/bota5.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Ice\_Wolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@Ice\_Wolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ice_Wolf)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/3 "2007-03-11T05:39:51Z")
The [pohutukawa.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P%C5%8Dhutukawa) Especially along Auckland’s [Tamaki Drive.](http://auckland.metblogs.com/archives/2006/12/aucklands_5th_gift_to_the_worl.phtml) ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/4 "2007-03-11T11:23:30Z")
Mine might well be the [_Metasequoia glyptostroboides_](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metasequoia). I have one I’m kind of bonsai’ing, and it just started to bud this week. (It’s a deciduous conifer.) ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/5 "2007-03-11T11:33:18Z")
Palm trees. They really do look neat swaying in the wind. ---
**Author:** ![Hogwash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e57/32.png) [@Hogwash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hogwash)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/6 "2007-03-11T11:33:54Z")
Always had a soft spot for the [Weeping Willow](http://images.google.co.uk/images?gbv=2&svnum=10&hl=en&safe=off&sa=X&oi=spell&resnum=0&ct=result&cd=1&q=weeping+willow&spell=1) myself. Good for hiding in. ---
**Author:** ![Fern\_Forest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/71c47a/32.png) [@Fern\_Forest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fern_Forest)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/7 "2007-03-11T11:45:28Z")
There’s a cacao tree at Foster Botanical Gardens. I love picking up the dried leaves and crumbling them up and smelling the chocolate smell. ---
**Author:** ![calm\_kiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc348/32.png) [@calm\_kiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/calm_kiwi)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/8 "2007-03-11T11:57:46Z")
[QUOTE=Ice Wolf] The [pohutukawa.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P%C5%8Dhutukawa) Especially along Auckland’s [Tamaki Drive.](http://auckland.metblogs.com/archives/2006/12/aucklands_5th_gift_to_the_worl.phtml) [/QUOTE] My absolute favourite. Followed by the Kauri and then the Oak. Nothing beats the Coromandel coast and Pohutukawa! ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/9 "2007-03-11T12:24:12Z")
Oh, where to begin? I love so many of the trees here in the Netherlands…and the timing is good, too, since the season of green budding leaves is about to start ! If I have to pick one tree, it would be the [Hawthorn](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crataegus) (Crateagus Monogyna). In early spring, it has little buds of green leaves that are absolutely [neon green](http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/animals/wildbritain/springwatch/record/hawthorn.shtml) , (if neon came in fresh, natural colors). Actually, the leaves can be eaten at that stage; I hear they can be inlaid in vinegar, like capers. In may, the freshly budded shiny leaves each have an umbrella of white dots, making each cluster of leaves a miniature wedding bouquet. In June, a Hawthorn three will be covered in a white veil of flowers, with an overpowering sweet typical smell, and the tree will be buzzing with insects. Standing under a frowering hawthorn tree, with that smell and the drone of busy bees is almost the definition of summer to me. In fall, the leaves are pretty dark green, and the flowers have been replaced by pretty umbrella’s of red berries. In winter, hawthornes are barren. But in my province, they are the staple tree for hedges. The shape of hawthorns hedges in winter , having been pruned for decades, can compete with any bonsai. I love hawthorns. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Sevastopol](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cdc98d/32.png) [@Sevastopol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sevastopol)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/10 "2007-03-11T13:10:14Z")
I am arboreally fickle, however my latest love is [the wollemia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wollemia) > [@](#): > > ‘Dinosaur tree’ or ‘living fossil’, the Wollemi Pine is certainly one of the greatest botanical discoveries of our time. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/11 "2007-03-11T13:19:23Z")
The [ginkgo](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ginkgo). I dunno why they say the fruit from the female smells like rancid butter – dogshit is more like it. A gorgeous tree, though, and you’ve gotta love the whole “living fossil” element. ---
**Author:** ![THespos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8c91f0/32.png) [@THespos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/THespos)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/12 "2007-03-11T14:16:06Z")
I’m big into sycamores. Now that’s a classy tree. There’s nothing in the world like a street lined with big ol’ sycamores. ---
**Author:** ![Phlosphr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Phlosphr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phlosphr)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/13 "2007-03-11T14:24:39Z")
Ahh a thread after mine own heart ! The [Mighty Oak](http://www.petticoated.com/angeloakA03.jpg) tree is an icon of the kings of the forest. The linked example is an Angel Oak in South Carolina. Old, Tough, Rugged, picturesque. ---
**Author:** ![romansperson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/romansperson/32/17100_2.png) [@romansperson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/romansperson)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/14 "2007-03-11T14:29:53Z")
Right now it’s the [redbud](http://www.hoffmannurseryinc.com/images/Redbud.jpg). They are starting to bloom here. ---
**Author:** ![Avarie537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/48db29/32.png) [@Avarie537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Avarie537)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/15 "2007-03-11T14:52:39Z")
In general, the [river birch](http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=river+birch&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2) is my favorite. I love the openness of the canopy, the shape of the leaves, and the amazing shredding bark. I think it looks just as good in the winter as any other season. As for a specific tree, there’s a huge old oak in a neighborhood east of downtown Indy that I stumbled upon by accident. I missed a turn on a side street, so I took the next one. That’s where this tree was. It’s called the [Kile Oak](http://groups.msn.com/IrvingtonGardenClub/treasures.msnw). (Scroll to the bottom of the page.) ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/16 "2007-03-11T14:54:08Z")
I don’t have a favorite tree. I could list a few trees and be O.K. with it. Weeping Willow Oak Red or White. Sugar Maple Poplar Shagbark Hickory Balck Walnut Giant White Pines Cottonwoods Large American Elms like before they all died off Side note enjoy your Ash now. Wisconsin is thining it’s ash out because of the Emerald Ash Bore, and we will lose 30% of the trees in Wisconsin when the Bore sweeps through. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/17 "2007-03-11T14:54:10Z")
[QUOTE=romansperson] Right now it’s the [redbud](http://www.hoffmannurseryinc.com/images/Redbud.jpg). They are starting to bloom here. [/QUOTE] I was just coming by to post that. Gorgeous! The blooms disappear far to quickly for my taste. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/18 "2007-03-11T15:33:01Z")
I like cedars. There are lots of 'em on my farm. Birch are nice too. ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/19 "2007-03-11T15:39:44Z")
I don’t know about favorite, but I do have a list of trees that make me excited for no good reason. Tulip tree Sassafras Silver and Sugar Maple Ginko biloba (except when the females are in the mood for love, cuz they stink like vomit during those times!) Southern magnolia Ironwood Southern catalpa Honey locust Royal poinsettia Sea grapes (except when they are in fruit) I know it goes against the spirit of the OP, but I also have some trees that make me angry or sad. Umbrella tree (angry) Tree of heaven (angry) Meluluca (sad) Norway maple (angry and sad) Cottonwood (only when its in flower) > [@lissener](#): > > Mine might well be the Metasequoia glyptostroboides. I have one I’m kind of bonsai’ing, and it just started to bud this week. (It’s a deciduous conifer.) There was one on my grad school campus. I used to have fun picking up the perfect little cones and chucking them at people. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2007, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456/20 "2007-03-11T15:42:30Z")
[QUOTE=Hogwash] Always had a soft spot for the [Weeping Willow](http://images.google.co.uk/images?gbv=2&svnum=10&hl=en&safe=off&sa=X&oi=spell&resnum=0&ct=result&cd=1&q=weeping+willow&spell=1) myself. Good for hiding in. [/QUOTE] What I was going to say. After that, one of the Japanese cedars. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doper-arboretum-or-your-favorite-tree/395456.md?page=2)