It Takes a Busload of Faith to Plant a Tree




A fully mature fringe tree - Chionanthus virginicus


The tiny bare root sapling fringe tree I just planted at my new home

As Lou Reed so aptly wrote, "It takes a busload of faith to get by." I believe that this also is fitting for those of us who plant trees. We plant trees knowing full well that most, if not all, will outlive us and that we may never see them reach their full potential.
Since moving south of the Mason-Dixon line, I have been planting fringe trees in my landscape. I simply love the tree. There is no real ecological reason behind it. They just make me feel good. I wait all winter for the buds on the scrawny branches to begin to swell and I start making plans for when the flowers might actually burst forth; plans that include which friends I need to invite over to share their beauty with me. I believe we need these kinds of plants in our landscapes. A landscape that does not include joy and anticipation is simply too boring for my taste.
It's true that the fruit of a fringe tree is eaten by birds (and squirrels), but it is not a top choice for any of the birds that have visited my yard over the years. The flowers are fragrant, but they are not a top choice for pollinators either. In addition, because fringe trees are dioecious, you need at least a male and a female for them to produce the elliptical purple fruit.  I find the flowers very difficult to sex, so I often end up planting three and hoping for the best. The thin branches and sparse foliage make it a very poor choice for cover, but the showy white-tassel blooms that cover the crown of a well-grown fringe tree make up for all of these deficiencies in my mind.
I just planted my first fringe tree two days ago. I may add another once I map out the area in the backyard that will someday become my woods, but I may decide that I don't have room. I will make that decision when the time comes. For now, I have this tiny two-year-old sapling that will share this landscaping journey with me, and like so many of my plants it will carry with it meaning that transcends its simple presence in my landscape. It was purchased for me by one of my dearest friends and it came from one of my favorite nurseries. In a way then, all of us are now bound together by this one small tree and I will be reminded of them through the years ahead. 
Many of my favorite plants in my landscapes have those kind of stories. Either I've collected the seed from a favorite place and grown it myself or they've been given to me or purchased from special people. We create stories with our plants and that is what ties us to the land we share with them. Gardening is more than plants. It becomes a community of shared experiences. As our landscapes mature we share them also with other living creatures; the birds, butterflies, bees, etc. and these add the other indispensable layer. The first bumblebee, the first bird nest, the first visit by a hummingbird are all significant milestones and the reason we garden. I await all of these in my new home that right now offers so little. Each plant I add adds to the story we are writing together. I will be documenting this journey in these pages over the years ahead and I appreciate your interest and shared experiences as I do.

Comments

  1. Michael LemmeFebruary 22, 2019 at 2:34 AM

    Wonderfully put.

    I look forward to reading your blog regularly to track your yard’s development, and to hear your thoughts on whatever it is you’d like to discuss. I’ve got a 1/2 acre I’m transitioning to an all-native refuge-just starting season 2 of my first plantings- and am going through many of the same thought processes and planning as you. Thank you for sharing your knowledge along the way.

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