Montezuma Cypress - Taxodium mucronatum

I recently came across a Montezuma Cypress tree (Taxodium mucronatum) in the "Retiro" park of Madrid, Spain. As soon as I saw it I had the distinct impression that I had never seen this tree species before and that it was an extraordinary tree.

A sign at the base of the tree revealed its identity and also made mention of the great "Arbol del Tule" in Santa Maria de Tule (Oaxaca, Mexico) which is both the worldwide champion of this species and the tree with the largest girth in the world (as claimed by some).

The leaves of this tree are similar to those of the Yew tree and thus the similarity in the scientific names between Taxodium and Taxus. These same leaves also help distinguish this tree from true cypress trees that have a similar "cone" but a very different leaf.

The image below does not really do justice to this tree as it is quite a bit bigger than it looks in this picture. I´m not really sure why the metallic fence but I suppose that it is there to keep people from climbing up onto the large lower branches.

The bark of the Montezuma Cypress reminds me a bit of what I imagine what dragon scales would look like.
Here is a rough translation of the sign by this tree...

"This specimen in the Retiro park is possibly the oldest tree in the park or even in all of Madrid. It was planted around the year 1633. It is said that during the War of Independence the French troops installed an artillery piece in its trunk, which may be the reason this tree was spared when almost all of the trees of the Retiro were cut down to make room for the French military headquarters. In 1991 the metallic fence was installed to protect this fine specimen. The "Ahuehuete del Parterre", as this tree is called, is the only representative of this species in the Retiro park and has been included in the registry of singular trees of Madrid."

Bracelet Honey Myrtle - Melaleuca armillaris

The Bracelet honey myrtle tree (Melaleuca armillaris) is another fine example of an Australian tree that is commonly planted in Southern Spain as an ornamental tree. The tree below is located in the Picasso gardens in the city of Malaga and is about 4 meters in height, which puts it pretty close to this tree species maximum height.
This tree species reminds me a great deal of the Bottlebrush tree and its close cousin the Weeping Bottlebrush whose leaves and flowers are quite similar except that the flowers instead of being a pale yellow are bright red. One distinctive of the Bracelet honey myrtle tree is that its bark peels of in long thin strips as can be seen in the image below.
You can see in the image below how similar the flowers of this tree species are to the Bottlebrush tree flowers both before they unfold and after they are fully formed at the terminal ends of the branches.

European Hackberry - Celtis australis

The European Hackberry (Celtis australis) is a tree species that also goes by the names European Nettle tree and Lote tree and is possibly the tree that the "Lotus-eaters" ate from as referenced by Homer.

The large specimen of the Celtis australis in the picture below is located in the "Concepción" historical botanical garden in Malaga, Spain at the beginning of the "Around the World in 80 trees" trail.
The fruit of the European hHackberry is a small berry like "drupe" that hangs on the end of a short stem connected to the base of the leaf stem. The size of the fruit is about one half inch in diameter.
Below is another view of the large tree (image above) from a different angle.

The leaf of the Celtis australis is simple in shape with serrate margins and measures about 2-3 inches long. The top side is a darker green than the bottom side which is also "fuzzier" also.

The bark is light gray and with age develops interesting shapes. One of the shapes in the picture below looks a bit like an eye.

I found another large example of the European Hackberry tree on the grounds of the Cathedral of Málaga. From the size of its trunk it looks like it has been growing there for a rather long time.

Western Hemlock - Tsuga heterophylla

The Western Hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla) is the State tree species of Washington State. Being originally from Eastern Washington I have to admit that I was surprised to discover that the Western Hemlock was our state tree. I would have guessed that the Western Red Ceder or the Ponderosa Pine would have been much better choices. As it turns out my feeling was not unjustified. The following quote is from official Washington State government website...

http://www.leg.wa.gov/legislature/statesymbols/

“In 1946, an Oregon newspaper teased Washington for not having a state tree. The Portland Oregonian picked out the western hemlock, Tsuga heterophylla for us, but Washington newspapers decided to choose their own and selected the popular western red cedar. State Representative George Adams of Mason County pleaded with the Legislature to adopt the western hemlock. The hemlock, he said, would become "the backbone of this state's forest industry." Adams' bill passed the Legislature and was signed into law in 1947.”

One of the distinctive features of the Western Hemlock is its "floppy" top and branches. One way to pick out the Hemlocks in the forest is to look for the trees that have the top sort of flopped over to one side as if they were too limp to stand up straight at the top. Also in the image above you can see how the end of the branch is somewhat limp.

The "needle-like" leaves of the Western Hemlock are somewhat flat and do not occur in bunches like a lot of other evergreens. They are about 1/2 - 3/4 of an inch long.

These pictures are not actually from a tree in Washington State but rather from a tree in Stanley Park in Vancouver B.C. that was conveniently labeled with the little plate below.

The Quote "Root of hemlock digg'd i' the dark" comes from "The Tragedy of Macbeth" scene one spoken by the Third Witch. It is a bit strange that this quote is used in connection with the Western Hemlock because the "Hemlock" that is referred to in the quote is not a tree and has no resemblance what so ever to this tree. Rather it is a poisonous perennial herbaceous flowering plant with the species name Conium maculatum. It looks like somebody did not do their homework right.

The cones of the Western Hemlock are quite small (less than an inch long) which makes them a favorite for use in arts and crafts as well as for potpourri.


A similar tree is the Eastern Hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) that is the state tree of Pennsylvania.