After failing miserably to keep up with the tree following meme last year, I am once more setting out to choose and follow a tree month by month with the theme hosted by Squirrelbasket. This time the tree selected is a resident of my own garden.
Arizona rosewood. Vauquelinia californica. It is one of the natives I have added to the White and Silver Garden. It grows in a naturally bushy shape but can be trimmed to make a small tree. In my never-ending need for shade in this very sunny garden, I am opting for the latter.
The foliage is beautiful; slender, glossy leaves terminate in a sharp point.
Because they grow in very upright clusters, one sees the somewhat paler underside most frequently.
The petioles are a wonderful bright red.
It does tend to grow as a shrub from the base; as you can see, I need to do some trimming.
Unfortunately, the bark would seem to be tasty, or at least edible. Rabbit damage last spring was so severe that for a while I worried I would lose my tree completely. In desperation I decided to wrap the base of the trunk. I didn't have any tree wrap, nor could I immediately get any, so I improvised with a long strip of the bandage wrap we use on dogs and horses. I felt that it would surely be breathable enough for the tree and should keep the rabbits at bay. It worked quite well. Eventually it began slipping off...
...and I took it off the rest of the way as I took these photos. The amount of damage is still perturbing as it goes all the way around the trunk, but the little tree never seemed troubled by it.
A couple of notes on the name. According to Wikipedia, the genus was named for French chemist Louis Nicolas Vauquelin. The species name of 'californica' is commonly found on plants originating in the Sonoran regions of Arizona, California, and Mexico, and in the deserts of Baja (lower) California. For Sonoran Desert gardens, it offers a good indication of a species well-adapted to heat, intense sunlight, and aridity. So far this one is no exception!
Weather Diary: Fair; High: 63 F (17 C)/Low: 49 F (9 C); Humidity: 45%-99%
Island Threads (Thursday, 12 January 2017 08:29)
it looks a nice little tree and tough surviving a rabbit attack, love the bandage, Frances
Pat (Thursday, 12 January 2017 10:09)
Excellent! What an unusual choice. I do love plants named after people.
That damage looks a bit painful...
I look forward to finding out more during 2017.
All the best :)
Kris P (Thursday, 12 January 2017 13:31)
What a nice little tree! I've never heard of it before.
Amy@smallsunnygarden (Thursday, 12 January 2017 17:38)
Thank you, Pat! So glad to have another shot at tree following. I'm still curious as to why the genus was named for Vaquelin; perhaps later I'll have some time to find out more...
Amy@smallsunnygarden (Thursday, 12 January 2017 17:48)
Thanks, Kris :) I think it's more of an inland species, as Sunset lists it only for zones 10-13. It's considered very well-adapted here!
Amy@smallsunnygarden (Thursday, 12 January 2017 18:11)
Thank you so much, Frances! It has proven very sturdy so far, making through a tough summer like the little desert native it is! Glad you like my emergency tree wrap ;-)
Hollis (Thursday, 12 January 2017 18:54)
A new genus for me--I had to check the family and ... duh ... rose! (as in rosewood I guess). The damage to the trunk looks serious, yet the leaves look quite healthy. It will be interesting to see how the trunk "recovers."
Amy@Smallsunnygarden (Saturday, 14 January 2017 01:14)
Hollis - Yes, I am waiting to see how the trunk heals over. And since the worst damage was done almost a year ago now and the plant has never shown signs of trouble, I'm hoping it's just a matter of time. I've never watched that kind of injury heal at close quarters, so I don't know what to look for!
Erika (Saturday, 14 January 2017 09:20)
Looks like a nice little tree. It will be interesting to follow it.
Amy@smallsunnygarden (Monday, 16 January 2017 10:55)
Thank you very much, Erika :) I'm looking forward to learning more as I follow it. Thanks for visiting my blog!
Diana Studer (Wednesday, 18 January 2017 15:33)
Thomas the cat has a similar effect on my Septemberbossies. Perhaps I should try bandaging them - altho they also seem relatively unconcerned.
Amy@smallsunnygarden (Friday, 20 January 2017 14:25)
Diana - I was relieved that the bandaging was so effective - no more damage occured after I added it! So it might be a good temporary solution to Thomas's liking for your Septemberbossies... ;-) It will only last a little while, but sometimes that's all that is needed to turn the animal's attention elsewhere!