With the Tree Symposium coming up this weekend, we’re highlighting some of the trees in the Arboretum’s collection. The so called ‘mitten tree’ (Sassafras albidum) located along the Sylvan Terrace Trail, produces three types of leaves, trilobed, bilobed and unlobed; the 2-lobed leaves resemble mittens, right and left, and turn a beautiful orangy/yellow in fall. Sassafras is native to North America and is the host plant for Spicebush Swallowtail butterflies. A beautiful Kousa Dogwood (Cornus Kousa) in front of the Mansion, covered in bright red leaves and fruit, is dramatically displayed in front of a Maidenhair Tree (Ginkgo biloba) which hasn’t completely turned its lovely saffron yellow yet; the fan-shaped leaves of the Ginkgo are unique among seed plants. The genus Ginkgo extends back approximately 170 million years ago and is widely regarded as a living fossil!
Picture credits Margery Ennist.
