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There is a wondrousness to all trees, manifest throughout the entire year.
But there are certain trees that show some of their most
fascinating attributes in the fall.
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Dropping Its Drawers: The Gingko | |
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With their distinctive fan-shaped leaves, gingko trees can be seen throughout the borough, along our streets and in our yards. But the poster child is the massive gingko in front of 150 Ridgewood Avenue, presumably the oldest tree in Glen Ridge, as it is estimated to have been planted in the early or mid-19th century.
In terms of longevity, however, it can’t compare to many in China, which are over 1,500 years old. Indeed, gingkoes are considered living fossils. They have no known living relative and have remained essentially unchanged from the age of the dinosaurs.
As if all of this were not enough, gingkoes also provide “one of autumn’s most famous performances”: losing virtually all their yellow leaves in one glorious dump. Why does this happen? To protect themselves from disease, deciduous trees form scabs between the branch and the leaf stems (petioles) before the leaves fall off. Most trees form these scabs on a leaf-by-leaf basis. But the gingko does it on a whole-tree basis, meaning all the leaves are ready to drop en masse with the first frost.
Watch the weather forecast and don’t miss the show!
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Holding on for "Deer" Life: The Oak | |
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In contrast to gingkoes, oaks exhibit leaf marcescence: the retention of dead leaves long after other trees are bare. Indeed, the leaves remain until spring. No one is quite sure why this occurs. It’s been suggested, however, that the retention of these brown leaves is intended to discourage browsing animals, such as deer, from eating the nutritious buds that form underneath. The logic being that no self-respecting browser wants a mouthful of dry, crunchy leaves. Supporting this theory is the fact that it is the younger oaks and the lower branches of larger trees that typically retain their leaves.
Another theory is that marcescence allows oaks to outcompete other trees in areas with less nutritious soils. According to this hypothesis, the retained leaves hold more snow, allowing the thawed moisture to drip below the tree. Then, in the spring when the tree needs it the most, the fallen leaves form a nutrient-rich and moisture-retaining mulch.
Whatever the reason, it’s tempting to think that marcescence is one of the many attributes that make oaks the keystone tree, ecologically speaking. Not only do oaks support the greatest biodiversity, hands down, but their extensive root systems also offer the maximum in soil stabilization and carbon sequestration. Moreover, one study revealed that oak leaf litter, when it had finally fallen to the ground, could hold as much as two inches of intense rainwater -- water that otherwise might have resulted in flooding.
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A Deciduous Conifer: The Dawn Redwood | |
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Exotic dawn redwoods are prized for their graceful pyramidal shape, their feathery, fern-like leaves, and their lovely sinuous bark. Like their cousins, the California redwoods, they are conifers, producing small, round, one-half to one-inch cones. But unlike them, they are not evergreens. Rather, they are deciduous, losing all their leaves in the fall, after their leaves turn from deep green to bronze. In this aspect, they take after another of their cousins, the bald cypress. Being deciduous is only one of the factors that make this tree fascinating.
Today, dawn redwoods are a rarity, though spectacular ones can be seen in the Bloomfield Cemetery and Freeman Gardens.* Fossil remains, however, suggest that dawn redwoods were once the most widespread tree species in the Northern Hemisphere. But until the 1940s, when a few were discovered in southern China, they were thought to have gone extinct 200-million years ago.
Consequently, it is remarkable that there are as many dawn redwoods as there are, considering that all of them had to be propagated in the last 70 years by means of cuttings and seedlings from those few Chinese remnants. At this point, there are no dawn redwoods left in the wild. Like the gingkoes, they’re now living fossils.
*It should also be noted that there are several dawn redwoods planted along North Mountain Avenue in Montclair. Undoubtedly, there is a story behind them.
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Hidden Gems: The Sourwood | |
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Perhaps it’s a stretch to say that sourwood trees are “hidden,” but to say they are overlooked and underappreciated – especially in terms of their spectacular beauty in the fall – is no exaggeration.
Sourwoods are endemic to North America, meaning they are not found on other continents unless planted, and have no related species. Although their name derives from the sour taste of their leaves, Native Americans and colonists used them extensively in medicines for everything from indigestion to asthma. But what sourwood trees are most noted for is the honey made from their lily-of-the-valley-like flowers.
These flowers, it should be noted, are intensely fragrant and bloom in mid-summer, showcased against lush green leaves. Though beautiful in summer, these natives become showstoppers in the fall when their seed clusters are splayed against brilliant red foliage on gracefully drooping branches.
Sourwood trees can be seen in the front yard of 190 Ridgewood Avenue (near the northwest corner of Lincoln) and on the property of the Minnie Lucie School (near the southwest corner of Highland and Baldwin).
Enjoy these and all our fall fascinating trees in Glen Ridge.
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The Shade Tree Commission wants to be your resource on all things "trees." If you have concerns, questions or issues, do not hesitate to contact us at shadetree@glenridgenj.org. You can also request a street tree inspection or sidewalk review at the Borough Tree Service Request Center.
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Elizabeth Baker, Chair
Joan Lisovicz
Robert Baum
Tina Seaboch
Julie Zichelli
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