As I left work the other day I decided to take some close up shots of the blooms on the Redbud trees that are outside my building. I love the Redbuds, they remind me of home back in Ohio. The botanist in me finds it interesting that they are in the same plant family as peas and beans, as is evident if you look closely at the flowers, which are distinctly pea like.
As I was snapping my pictures a guy from the lab downstairs came up to me and said "You need to check out the one up there that looks like it's covered in purple moss" and pointed up the hill. Sure enough, on the top of the knoll stood an ancient tree who's trunk was covered in blossoms. I'd never seen anything like that before; flowering bark!
Developmentally, I have no idea whats going on there, but it sure was interesting to look at. I'll have to ask my better botanist friends about why the bark was blossoming
3 comments:
That is... beautiful!
Fantastic photos, Linda, as usual! The tree with the flowering bark is WONDERFUL - so fascinating! Does it seem to be a much older tree than the ones down below? I've never seen anything like it before!
Here in MI, as in Ohio, we have red buds everywhere and we're always so happy to see them - it means spring is here!
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