Caucasian Wingnuts in Seattle!

Before there were Caucasian Wingnuts there was Pterocarya fraxinifolia The Caucasian Wingnut Tree. Yes, really.

A fast-growing, overlarge pushy tree, it's powerful roots tend to "cause trouble to manmade structures". Here it is in Seattle. This line of street trees had to be beheaded because they were interfering with public works, and would not "play nice with others". The Caucasian Wingnut needs to stand alone, otherwise it will outgrow it's allotted space in society. But then it will spring up again from the stump, undaunted by annoying governmental policies.

Seriously, it is a relative of Walnut from (of course) the Caucasus. It has winged nuts. But I laughed when I saw the name in my book, and diverted our tree tour to 24th Ave just to see this increasingly rare (in Seattle anyway) tree. In Seattle, "they" are cutting down the Caucasian Wingnuts because they are too troublesome. It must be a left-wing conspiracy.

Oh I just can't be serious. I keep trying but it creeps in. Sorry if I have offended anyone, please feel free to find a "Portlandia" or similar tree and make fun of me, I promise to laugh and keep it light.

I have grown this around the Valley for twenty plus years. It is a vigorous species indeed, and unfortunately likes to get started pretty early in the season - which often leads to frost/freeze damage to young foliage here.

My first plant was twenty to thirty feet tall when it succumbed to the 2007 Easter freeze - when in full leaf. Fortunately, Pterocarya fraxinifolia Fabulous Fecundity™ produced seed like no other. I had wee Wingnuts in every pot being watered nearby - and then some.

My current trees are equal in height, and doing their thing annually. Apparently the Valley agrees with them.

Nice trees- I have always had a thing for nut trees. Are the nuts edible?

Caucasian Wingnuts, lol; I'm with you on the humor factor cause the common name should be White Stupidos.

Well, let's not get too bigoted too quickly. Caucasians cover a whole lot of ethnicities.

If one peruses where the Caucusus actually is, one likely wouldn't create an equivalency with "white" guys.

Armenia, Turkey, Azerbaijan, far southern Russia, and the other Georgia all habituate there. Not exactly redneck territory...

I never really "got" why people descended from folks in northern Europe/Scandinavia are called Caucasian, for exactly that reason.
Lots of plants from "The Caucasus" do well here in Seattle. Actually this place is welcoming to plants from all kinds of places. We even welcome Democratic and Republican caucuses.

I'm not bigoted, I welcome Caucasians into my garden. Heck, some of my best friends are Caucasian! I draw the line at Caucuses, they're too raucous for me.

heehee.
Me too. In fact one of my best friends is Veronica 'Georgia Blue' ;-)

:) You guys are too much fun!

You should see who the Wingnuts hang out with:

Oriental Spruce (Picea orientalis)

Oriental Plane Tree (Platanus orientalis)

English Yew (Taxus baccata)

European Smoke Tree (Cotinus coggygria)

A fun read...

http://www.chicagobotanic.org/downloads/collections/georgia2010.pdf

Thanks, that was interesting. I have a Smoke Tree here. That is one huge Plane Tree!

Where are the pictures, VV? From Pistil's post, you had pictures of your Wingnuts' friends.

momlady:

There were pictures of (most) all these in the linked article - and of many more species less readily recognizable.

oh, ok, thanks!