not daffodils, for the nature lovers among us

The larva and adult of the Giant Swallowtail Butterfly, the largest North American butterfly. The larva is on a small plant of Ptelea Trifoliata. The host plants of the GS are plants in the citrus family, but as citrus is not hardy here, I planted some PT which is hardy here to attract them. How something that looks like that could change into that beautiful adult is among the wonders of nature.

Regards,
Larry in Southaven, Mississippi

13 comments for “not daffodils, for the nature lovers among us

  1. Larry,

    On the larva pix it is very hard to figure out which end is which! UGH!

    Edie Godfrey

    Minnesota, where it might actually be summer for two days of heat and humidity.

  2. Well Edie if I recall crrectly the front is actuallly under the larger end- you cannot see its head,

    these are the hated Orange Dogs that eat orange tree leaves in the south- I hear that they will eat garden rue and eastern ash here in the north,they are uncommon in my area-
    I also have trifolate orange, but the plants are not doing well- I have to mark them better as
    most people who try to help cut these thorny trees down for me…
    I have no pipevine here- not even sure what it looks like, but I do occasionally see the swallowtails
    John
  3. Connection between trifoliate orange and osage orange (the latter I hate!!)?
    Forgive them only because the cardinals like them are they popularly known as hackberries.

    (obviously we don’t have any in our garden, but had a huge one dominating our former garden in town.)

    Loyce

  4. OK we have too many common names here – I will have to look up the binomials but up here. Trifoliate orange has bitter little orange like fruits and looks like a thorny cirtus but is distantly related,Osage orange or hedge apple is also thorny but the fruit is compound like a raspberry and is not so far as I know related to citrus,Hackberry and sugarberry are much less thorny than the prior plants, have much smaller fruits and hackberry gets to be huge. All are classed as invasive plants in different places. The thorns on the trifoliate are sharper and softer, hackberry can be hand pulled when small – the other two require gloves and all three resprout if you cut rather than pull them.

    John Beck

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celtis

    Celtis laevigata Willd. – Southern Hackberry or Sugar Hackberry, (SOUTHERN US / TEXAS) Sugarberry (E USA, NE MEXICO)

    Celtis occidentalis L. – Common Hackberry, Northern Hackberry, False Elm (E NORTH AMERICA) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osage-orange

    Osage-orange, Horse-apple, Bois D’Arc, or Bodark (Maclura pomifera)] It is not closely related to the citrus fruit called an orange: Maclura belongs to the mulberry family, Moraceae, while oranges belong to the family Rutaceae.[2] Recent research suggests that elemol,  extractable from the fruit, shows promise as a mosquito repellent with similar activity to DEET in contact and residual repellency.[3
    ]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trifoliate_orange

    Trifoliate Orange (Poncirus trifoliata, syn. Citrus trifoliata) is a member of the family Rutaceae, closely related to Citrus, and sometimes included in that genus, being sufficiently closely related to allow it to be used as a rootstock for Citrus. It differs from Citrus in having deciduous, compound leaves, and pubescent (downy) fruit. It is native to northern China and Korea, and is also known as the Chinese Bitter Orange.[1]
    http://tammystravel.wordpress.com/mayan-riviera/fishing-village-puerto-morelos/

  5. It’s always interesting to see how differently a plant can be looked at depending on where it is. Our native hackberry (the occidentalis version) is barely-noticed and quite harmless part of our Ohio woodlands.
    The imported Osage Orange is usually considered an interesting addition here and there and never causes a problem that I’m aware of. Until 2008, Ohio law actually specified only two species which could be lawfully used as a natural fence and the Hedge Apple was one of them, although I’ve never seen such a fence. The law is now silent on the matter. The wood will certainly dull a chain saw chain in a few minutes.
    I see that science remains perplexed to some degree as to just why the Osage Orange fruit ever came about and the giant sloth is considered a likely past connoisseur. I’ll assume that’s a good bet, since it’s also believed that both these thorny trees, as with locusts and the other “big thorn” types, evolved their thorns to protect themselves from the megalithic beasts — mammoth, giant sloth, giant beaver etc.
    In any regards, sorry these aren’t more friendly down South.
    One has to wonder, is there somewhere in the Atlas mountains where someone curses daffodils each day as a pest species that just won’t go away? lol
    Regards,
    Drew Mc Farland

  6. Hi Drew,
    I was going to only send this to you, but perhaps others may find this interesting. There is a line of Osage Orange trees at the south west corner of Reynoldsburg-New Albany Road at Clark State Road. They are fully mature specimens and tower over the roadway. The trunks are huge and would take two peoples’ arms to encircle them. Since the trees come in male and female forms, all but one of them are male and only one bears fruit. I think I counted nineteen of them. Since they are at nearly equal distance apart, it might be that this is the remnant of a long ago fence. I have wanted to stop at one of the houses that sit behind the trees, but never had the nerve. I think there must be a good story there. I pass by there four times a week, taking my mother to day care in New Albany, and I have admired these magnificient specimens. They compare favorably with your own “Ent” at your farm.
    Donna

  7. Donna:

    I’ve been that way many times but have never noticed — you have a better eye than I.  By all means stop and ask sometime.  Worst that can happen is they look at you oddly!

    Regards,
    Drew

  8. Dear Drew,

    Extremely interesting to read your explanation of the Osage Orange. When we lived in Illinois in 1994 I was fascinated by what I was told was the Osage Oranges that grew around Decatur. They had mitten shaped leaves that turned a creamy yellow in the Fall and the most enormous fruit that looked as if would kill you if it landed on your unsuspecting head. It was as big as a soccer ball. After seven months of looking at them I decided I would have to take a fruit home with me and see if it would grow in England in my garden. I felt rather guilty about this and half expected to be seized as I went through customs with my undeclared football. It was full of seeds and many germinated. I have a five foot high thorny bush growing on my boundary now, 17 years later. Does this sound like the Osage Orange?

    Wendy Akers

  9. Wendy:

    Neat story and it sounds like Chris knows a lot more about it than I do.  I think the Wikipedia article is good, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osage_Orange and was surprised to see how small its native range was.   I wonder if it is actually being used as a natural fence anywhere today. Typical story though “intelligence” upon us, it ends up being trouble.  At least the hedge apple is no multiflora rose.

    Regards,
    Drew

  10. As someone who has grown up around the Osage Orange (Bodark tree in some parts of Missouri, a corruption of Bois d’Ark from the French who so-named this member of the Mulberry family when they saw the Osage Indians using it for making bows with) – that sounds like an Osage Orange to me! In the 19th century, there was an attempt to use Osage Orange trees to create hedgerows in the Midwest like the ones in England. It is also an excellent source of dyestuff – allegedly the khaki/olive green uniforms of the U.S. Army during WWI were dyed with Osage Orange. It is also an excellent firewood – giving off heat that’s comparable to anthracite coal, and as a fencepost making material it’s hard to beat – it’s virtually unrottable! Cattle and horses eat the fruit, but you have to watch them as they can choke on the big chunks, squirrels love the fruit, and hooligan humans love to pelt people’s houses and cars (or high schools) with the fruit when in season. It’s also allegedly a good spider/roach deterrent (In my experience it only works if you DROP the fruit directly upon the offending pest without missing.) 

    Take it from a “neighbor” of the Osage Orange – you may just have an interesting tree on your hands – just make sure you dispose of the fruit (you may never see any if you have a male, allegedly OOs come in “male” and “female” trees, properly to avoid it becoming a nuisance to your neighbors!
    Chris

  11. One more bit about osage orange

    The fruit of the osage orange is wonderful in the late autumn, to put into a bowl in your home! They are almost chartreuse and smell spicy. I stick springs of holly between them for a centerpiece. Last a long time.

    Janie Vaughan in Virginia

  12. Osage Orange Continued

    I live in VA and have a very large Osage Orange tree by my front walk. Yes, you do have to be very aware in the fall when the “oranges” are dropping…they can hurt!!!

    My Mother in law was always very creative and decided there had to be a good use for the “Hedge Apples”. We would slice the apple across the fruit in ¼” or less slices ( carefully) then place on an aluminum foil covered cookie sheet , place in the oven at 200-250* F for 6-8 hours or overnight – could turn if wanted – and let them dry out. They would turn a beautiful brown color, the edges would turn up or fold and this would make a very attractive “flower “. The seeds in the center and the texture of the fruit would look different with each dried slice and these could then be placed on grape vine wreaths or other green wreaths for fall / Christmas decorations. They offer wonderful variety for many uses –garlands as well. They can be stored in a cookie tin for ‘later’ when have sufficiently dried. Better if they are dried to crispy form and not “soft”.

    They do have a ‘milky goo’ when sliced that is rather sticky, so do use covered surface when working with them.

    They offer lot of conversation whether in the green ball form or the dried slice flower form!!!

    Glenna Graves

  13. Osage orange fruit can also be a very good moth repellent in closets and air freshener in the basement.

    Duane Hurlbert Howard OH zone 5

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