On Tulip Trees

Tulip Trees Over My House (7 March 2022)

I have noted my appreciation for living on a wooded lot in the ‘burbs of Maryland. No abominable lawn to maintain. We have a hot tub in the back yard. It is a wonderful appliance. Therapeutic for mind and body to sit in 103° water…even more so in winter at times when the steam rises as snow falls around you.

But as I stare up at the dense webs of wood overhead, I have to accept that being surrounded by tulip poplars is not the greatest forest experience. Liriodendron tulipifera is commonly called ‘tulip poplar’ because it has a tulip-like flower. While the light hardwood has some commercial uses, my appreciation pretty much begins and ends with all the free fire wood that has literally rained down from the heavens.

Tulip Tree Crown (2 March 2022)

I do not find tulip trees to be very attractive. Some trees have a sweeping grace as they ascend skyward. I will give them this…poplars are tall and straight. In full leaf, they are dense and green but, their bare bones are awkward and ungainly. Tulip tree branches jut off in odd directions. Thick branches suddenly end where breaks have occurred. Because they’re brittle, wind and cold cause the less healthy parts of the tree to snap off. We have no garage and park in the driveway, there have been three insurance claims due to falling branches. The hot tub cover has been replaced three times.

Our Front Yard (14 May 2008)

One’s first understanding of trees is usually that some are ‘evergreen’ conifers and others are deciduous, meaning they drop their leaves in the fall and produce new ones in the spring. Tulip poplars elevate the term ‘deciduous’ to a year-round activity since there is no season when something doesn’t rain upon us. In the spring, it’s flower parts. In the summer, a fine mist of sap makes the cars in the driveway all sticky and the heat prompts the trees to start shedding leaves early.

Under the Shedding Tulip Trees (1996)

Of course, autumn drops enough leaves to make one think the house is made of them. If they stay in one place too long, wet leaves decompose rapidly and will stain whatever surface they cover. With winter freezing and any other time a storm blows through, these brittle trees shed branches. It is not a good place to be without a garage. Being outside on a windy day can be treacherous. If you hear a cracking sound from above, it’s best to take cover.

After the Latest Blow (3 March 2018)

Although it is a miserable tree, I have to appreciate that the house is shaded during the summer cooling season and there’s no lawn to futz with. There…the half-full guy in me ends on a positive note. There will be another post inspired by the trees soon.