MORE ABOUT TREES
The robins and other birds have switched from eating our strawberries, cherries and June berries to the ripening mulberries. The native species has the familiar dark fruit and the introduced, naturalized Asian species has cream colored ripe fruit.
The mulberry is an example of trees which may have bisexual flowers, or unisexual flowers. In some cases, the entire plant may have only male flowers and bear no fruit. We may occasionally see two mulberries side by side, one covered with fruit and the other none
We humans tend to explain nature in words associated with human behavior and biology. To explain sexuality in plants, the terms homosexuality, heterosexuality, and bisexuality may be used.. The mulberry is an example of all three conditions.
Most trees produce both pollen and egg-producing structures on the same tree. Some trees, like chestnuts and willows, have male and female parts in separate flowers. Other trees, like apples and dogwoods, have their male and female parts in the same flower. Most trees will produce viable seeds with the pollen carrying sperm and eggs from the same individual. Some trees require cross pollination for fruit set and seed production.
Cherries and apples yield more fruit if the pollen is transferred from a different tree even though the flowers on these trees produce both sperm in the pollen and eggs. Pollen from a golden delicious tree used on a red delicious tree will produce only red delicious fruit.
In Ginkgo, there is a sharp distinction between the male pollen producing trees and the female egg-fruit producing trees. The male tree is preferred in landscaping since the females produce foul, messy fruit. Several male trees were planted in the downtown Tiffin streetscape.
The American holly is another example of separate male and female plants. They need to be in close proximity to produce the familiar red berries on the female plants.
A few weeks ago, I wrote about some large trees in Tiffin and Seneca County. A goal is to locate the largest tree of its kind in the area. This information would be available to those interested. Perhaps we have some state records in Seneca County.
Walt Szableski, 826 Co. Rd. l6 reports an osage orange tree that is 36 in diameter. (diameter, breast-height, or DBH) and also a white oak that is in a nearby soy bean field owned by Ed Daniels that is 59 DBH.
Gaylord Snavely of Tiffin reports a white oak on his son, Pauls property, 9735 E. Twp. Rd. l38, Republic that is 50 DBH and 35 to 40 feet to the first limb. This is in the Snavely sugar camp area.
Francis Kramer of l5 Elita Street, Tiffin, describes a Chinese elm that is 4l.5 DBH. Roger Murray, of 558 E. Twp. Rd. 58, reports an American elm that is 43 DBH. American elms that are supposedly resistant to the Dutch elm disease are now available from nurseries.
From Mrs. Richard Miller, l3004 E Reed Twp. Rd 8, Republic, we get the listing of a black walnut that is 34 DBH.
Mrs. John Roth of Attica has described a large white oak on the Joan Willman property that is located along the Little Rhine. It is near the crossing of Twp. Rd l04 and Co. Rd. 8l. It was found to be 59 DBH. Scott Swinehardt, 250 Clinton Ave. Tiffin, has in his back yard a white oak that is 62 DBH.
Wayne Stephens of Tiffin reports a silver maple in Greenlawn Cemetery that is 45 DBH. Also found there are a Norway maple, 44.5; horse chestnut, 4l; and yellow wood of 31 DBH.
In the Junior Home Park there is a beautiful yellow oak, 47 DBH; a red oak, 30 ; Norway maple, 31.5; black walnut 40.5; basswood, 29.5; white oak, 52.5; black cherry, 31.5; pignut hickory 30; horse chestnut, 25.5; hackberry, 26; and a swamp white oak that is 29 DBH.
Across River Road from the Junior Home Park near the front entrance to the Tiffin Developmental Center, is a giant sycamore that measures 57.5 DBH.
From Jack and Joan Sigler, 340 Melmore Street , we discovered a hazelnut tree that has a diameter of 34 three feet from the ground level. This tree was moved to its present site by Mr. Lloyd Andrus more than 40 years ago.
One of the most interesting trees in the area is a native American chestnut found at the corner of Riverside Drive and Hunter Street at the Kuebler residence, l94 Riverside Drive. It has two trunks, the larger one with a DBH of 21.5. It may be resistant to an introduced blight that destroyed chestnuts of the Appalachian area from Maine to Georgia.
- Percy