Big Trees

A few days ago the post was about the tuliptree.  So is this one.  This tree is about four blocks from our house.  It may be the largest tuliptree I have seen.  Note red arrow indicating the first branch above the street lamp.  What a piece of timber!

The white line through the top roughly indicates a "normal" growth pattern.  This giant was adversely affected in a storm a few years ago, and thus a branch has grown somewhat askew.

The tree to the right is directly across the avenue from the giant above.  Its shape is more the norm for the yellow poplar.  This is quite a large example in its own right.

Liriodendron tulipifera

 During my bicycle ride this morning I noticed that the tuliptrees are in bloom.

The tuliptree, or sometimes tulip tree, also known as yellow poplar, or even canoe poplar, though it is not a poplar, is the state tree of Indiana.  They are truly lovely trees, often growing to great height, sometimes more than 30 meters, and always with a symmetrical silhouette.

I have always believed, as many say, that the tree is called "tulip tree" because the leaves resemble the shape of a tulip blossom.  Recently, though, I note that some writers are stating that

the name derives from the shape of the flower.

It is a beautiful tree, and the flowers are stunning, though they are usually above eye level, and thus go unnoticed by many people.  I snapped these two pictures of the lowest-hanging flower on a nearby tree.  The green petals with orange and yellow accents combine to make a perfect flower.  But they must be enjoyed in the now, for they do not last long.

(This particular flower is about eight feet above the ground.  I had to pull the branch down to get the interior shot.)