The Tree of Heaven

We have 7 of these in our garden. But we also have dozens of saplings in the grass, hedges, paths, and even the dry stone walls.

Our neighbours have some too. 

So this week, on our visit to the cottage we spent time pulling the saplings up. And we removed a dead hedge as we went.

June looked the species up on our return.

The Tree of Heaven is a weed masquerading as a tree that's pretty to look at in the spring. It is very hard to get rid of. It came from China.

There are male and female versions. The males send out suckers that grow round it. The females send out airborne seeds. The roots grow horizontal just under the ground, or into a wall, or under the house, etc.

They grow fast. Large trees can be hollow and will come down in a storm. They don't live too long (about 50 years) but in that time they can give rise to thousands of offspring.

They will grow anywhere. Rocks seam to be popular from our experience. The best place to grow them is in soft wet soil because then they are easy to pull up by the roots.

If part of the root is left in the ground, it will grow again. If you cut it and poison it, the poison must be applied in minutes of it being cut.

Talking of poison, the tree poisons the other plants round it. Hence the dead hedge with all the saplings in it. The Chinese use it to promote hair growth (among other things) but it is bad for your health in general. Smelling badly, as it does, it is also bad for asthma. This is probably why I was left a bit breathless after pulling up or cutting down about 50 saplings. Or it could just have been the quantity!

We have a quote from a tree surgeon for the removal of the mummy and daddy trees. They will become logs and at last be useful to us, probably for years to come!

But why on earth are they called the "Tree of Heaven"?

--

Terry Westoby
Website www.westobyweb.com web design service
Cottage: http://holidaycottage.westobyweb.com 1 bed cottage for rent, 4 people max.
Other Blog: http://1-lord.blogspot.com/ Christian news
Photos:  http://photo.westobyweb.com our faces & places