What’s a Tree?

I had the rare opportunity to impart some of my vast tree lore upon an unsuspecting neighbor this afternoon. It was a rare opportunity because there aren’t a lot of trees in these parts. That’s why our friend the cactus wren had to make its nest in the boughs of a saguaro. Actually, it is a great place for a nest because there aren’t many predators willing to deal with the saguaro’s spines. Also, note that the bird went to a lot of trouble to recycle that plastic bag…

The winter frosts were worse than usual and left their mark on the entire neighborhood. There were very few who didn’t lose a tree or some plants to the frost. My neighbor was trying to ascertain the amount of damage to his tree and I was able to help him find the parts that had survived, despite the lack of any outward signs of life. My time spent with a friend who was working on becoming a biologist and a short stint with the forestry department in Wisconsin – another story, another time.

Cactus have to some extent filled the niche left by the dearth of trees. Our Mexican Pipe organ (Cereus v. monstrose) is one example and as a bonus, it is flowering again. I threw in the moon picture because it looked so lovely this morning. I used a Canon S3 to take the pictures.