Schinus molle - California Peppertree

The California Peppertree, neither a Californian or a pepper but whats in a name anyway. Old trees are a sight to see with their lumpy trunks, weeping habit and nice attractive fruit, they seem to say old California landscape.

This broadleaf evergreen hails from South America, reaches a size of 15 to 30' by about the same, and forms a spreading rounded crown and weeping lateral branches.

The evergreen leaves are alternate, pinnately compound 6-12" long with 20 to 60 leaflets. Each leaflet is 1-2" long by 1/4" wide, lanceolate, with serrulate or entire margins. Sometimes there is a terminal leaflet and sometimes not.

Flowers are borne on separate male and female trees, females giving rise to the attractive fruit. Flowers are yellowish white, in many branched clusters borne at the tips of the branches.

Fruit is an attractive rose-colored or red drupe about 1/4" in diameter held in drooping clusters. They are messy to say the least.

The bark is stringy or fibrous, warty or bumpy, not sure what to call it but cool.

Great looking tree if not a mess, but hey, you cant have everything.

Misidentification; Other Schinus perhaps? The Brazilian peppertree is smaller, has fewer leaflets and more rounded canopy.

Maytenus boria has leaves very similar but not really, they just look like it, the mayten tree has simple leaves and not compound but they are easily confused.

Locations:

Aptos:

Capitola
Lots of places, a great one with a massive trunk at 608 Capitola Ave. I do like the ones on Depot Hill in Capitola, and you can see both Schinus species, S. terebinthifolius as well as Maytenus boria to clarify any identification issues. Check them all out at 112 Oakland St for the mayten, 202 for the Cal peppertree and then up a block to 502 El Salto for the Brazilian peppertree.

Soquel:
4500 Soquel Dr.

Santa Cruz:
924 Walnut

Robinia pseudoacacia - Black Locust

The Black Locust is an old school tree. It has been in commerce for years. The black locust tree traveled across the US with migrating easterners using the fast growing, drought tolerant tree for lumber and fence posts. Old trees are very attractive and tough looking.  They have an upright, open crown, a straight trunk and the foliage often restricted to the ends of the coarse branches. Makes a nice contrast with the attractive rough bark. You are much more likely to encounter the pink flowered one than the species in Santa Cruz. There are a few old species on the corner of N Branciforte Ave and Goss.

The black locust has alternate, odd pinnately compound leaves, 6-14" long with 7-19 leaflets. The leaflets are about 1.5-2" long, entire margins, sort of oblong-shaped.

Stems are brown, smooth, often with sharp stipular spines at the base of the leaves. Spines seen on vigorous shoots.

Flowers are very attractive. Each pea-like flower is off white, and very fragrant.

Fruit is a 3-4" brown pea-pod. Generally produced in high quantities, and looking pretty bad once the foliage drops off.

Bark is very deeply furrowed and a wonderful contrast, especially in winter with snow. Not around here anyway.

Misidentification: not sure, students usually have a problem with so many pinnately compound leaves.

Locations: Great ones on Branciforte and Goss, old school ones.

Lots of cultivars abound as well,

There is a 'Decaisneana' with very light pink flowers at 7341 Soquel Dr on the side of the lot. Shown below. Most likely a hybrid Robinia X ambigua.

'Frisia' - Is a beautiful tree in the right place. I first saw this tree at  Buchart Gardens and was blown away. Tried it many times up north in the cold and heat, and would not do well, but here it seems to be great. There is one at 136 Mar Monte in La Selva Beach. The image below is not the one on Mar Monte.

Robinia X ambigua idahoensis -  Rose colored flowers, more commonly planted in SC than the others, found along River St near Mission. Bark is smooth, and usually one or two vertical cracks on the trunk. Not sure what the real name is, or if there is a difference between this one and 'Purple Robe'.

'Tortuosa' - A dwarf twisted form, this plant may  be 10' tall with a dense twisted branches. Two nice ones on Monterey Blvd in Capitola, 729 and 230 Junipero Ct (2 doors up).

Quercus suber - Cork Oak

The Cork Oak has to the one of my oldest memories of trees from when I was a kid. My favorite book was Ferdinand the Bull. As some of you might remember he would sit in the shade of a cork tree. What a mellow bull. Still remember the corks hanging from the branches.

We are blessed with several beautiful specimens of this oak in town. The Cork oak is native to the southern Mediterranean region and grows well here. A large evergreen tree growing 30-60' tall and almost as wide forming a wide dome shaped canopy. Branches may settle almost to the ground if left in place. This specimen is located at 7th and Soquel Ave.

The leaves are alternate, simple, elliptical to oval shaped, 1-3" long, about half as wide, with either entire or lightly spinose margins that may also be wavy or undulated. Faster growing leaves are generally more spinose than slower growing leaves. Leaves generally dark bluish green, looking like they have a wax coating on the upper surface and usually lightly hairy on the lower. Leaves last 3 years.

Flowers are small and insignificant, light yellow, arranged in catkins, typical of an oak. Females are borne in the axils of leaves and will produce the typical acorn.

Fruit is an acorn, 1 - 1-1/4" long, rounded at the tip and about half covered with a cap.

Bark, wow, what can anyone say. Used for ever as corks for wine and is now used as flooring. Harvest off of trees every 9 or so years. (It does not seem to hurt the tree, may embarrass it a little, sort of like shaving a dog.) These two images are from San Lorenzo Park.

One of my favorite specimens located at Painshill Park in England. Love the supports holding up the branches. This garden was planted in the early 1700's. The tree was more likely planted between 1730 and 1770 by the garden owner and designer Charles Hamilton.

Bonsai specimen at the SF Flower show.

Misidentification: Other similar oaks if all you have to look at are the leaves. Q. agrifolia maybe, look at the lower surface of the leaf.

Q. ilex as well, but the leaves are glossier perhaps, more green and does not have the great bark.

Locations:

Live Oak:

7th and Soquel Ave.

Several on the 18th hole at De Laveaga Golf Course

Santa Cruz:

San Lorenzo Park SC.

Castro Adobe near Larkin Valley was suggested by a reader, thanks!!!

Pistachia chinensis - Chinese Pistache

I have come to like this tree more as time goes by. Very commonly planted, seemingly on every street. Planted for all the right reasons, nice size, fall color, drought tolerant, multi-seasonal interest. Its sort of like the kid with really big feet when young, sort of awkward, but grows into a nice specimen with age. This is a nice planting at a winery along Main St. in Soquel.

The Chinese Pistache is a medium to fast growing deciduous tree. Around here it grows to about 25-30' but can get much larger in warmer climates (I saw some in Chico that were 50 feet or so). It has a rounded canopy with branching going every which way, especially when young (like the kid with size 12 shoes). It does not develop a central leader but has three or four main scaffold branches arising from the main stem. This is the same planting in late fall.

If  you plant the female tree you will likely end up with something like this in the early winter, this was Dec 23.

The leaves are alternate, odd-pinnately compound, with 10-16 leaflets, broadly lanceolate with acuminate tips, and a beautiful dark green color. Fall color is a great orange-red color, sometimes a bit yellow.

New foliage in the spring can be reddish. 

Stems are smooth when young, slightly noticeable lenticles, with a sharp pointed terminal bud. You can see the alternation of the leaf arrangement here as well as the red petioles.

Older stems develop a reddish brown color and shallow fissures.

Trees are dioecious, male and female flowers on different trees. A very common cultivar is 'Keith Davey', a male. Flowering before leaving out, on old wood so they dont appear at the ends of the branches. These are the male flowers of 'Keith Davey'.

Fruit is a small, 1/8-1/4" single seeded drupe, bright to dull red or pink colored, turning blue or black when full mature. Falling in large quantities making a bit of a mess on sidewalks or patios.

Misidentification? Leaves are somewhat like a Cassia, but not as large or leathery dark green (nor is the tree evergreen). There a lots of compound leaved plants around. Look for the pointed buds.

Location: Everywhere. This a a very common tree that works well in most areas. Tolerant of low water, compacted sites.

Koelreuteria bipinnata - Chinese Flame Tree

The Chinese Flame tree is much more common in Santa Cruz than its relative K. paniculata (Golden Rain Tree). A medium sized deciduous tree with a broadly spreading to rounded crown to slightly upright. They are enjoyed for their beautiful flowers (not always seen here), interesting fruit and mildly attractive yellow fall color. Often single stemmed but can be seen multi-stemmed around town, Grows slow to 20-30'. Native to China. These are on Park in Aptos.

The foliage is bipinnately compound, quite large, 1-2' long, and about the same width. Side leaflets are compound with 8 or so leaflets, each about 2-3" long, elliptical with a pointed tip and entire (smooth) or slightly serrated margins and a strong stout petoile.

Young stems are thick, green with distinct lenticels. Notice the base of the petioles how they are grooved to make way for the bud. (I am sure there is a term for that, have to look it up someday.)

Older stems and truck are gray-brown with orange in the shallow fissures.

Flowers are very attractive, bright yellow on long racemes (unbranched), and develop late in summer, usually July or August, sometimes not at all.



Fruit is pretty interesting. The seeds are enclosed in a papery seed coat looking like a Japanese lantern. The fruit start out green but develop into an attractive pink or red late fall. They eventually turn brown.

Misidentification?
Well, could be the K. paniculata, look at the leaves 10-14" long vs almost 2 feet, leaflets which have toothed or lobes margins rather than entire, and the stems are not covered with lenticles.  This is also a bigger tree generally.
Might also be Alianthus altissima but the leaves are only pinnately compound but they do look sort of similar.

Location:
Aptos
As shown these are on Park Ave between the freeway and Soquel Dr.

Santa Cruz
Nice one downtown on Rose Alley off Chestnut.

Betula pendula - European Weeping Birch

Perhaps one of the most popular trees in northern climates, the European White Birch. Regardless for being a riparian tree they are everywhere in Santa Cruz. They are by far the most common birch seen in SC, partially because the others have not been available as long. You may notice them more in the winter due to their habit than in the summer.

These are large (30-50'), fast growing deciduous trees with an oval to pyramidal habit with upright spreading laterals and weeping minor branches giving it a very nice soft shape. Sensational tree, love the weeping habit, the drooping branchlets from the main laterals. Generally looks best in groves. You may recognize this on on Mission Blvd. You might run into a "clump birch" which could any birch species but has 3 individual trees growing in the same pot. 

You can see the form more easily in winter. And, its very clear that most people plant them in groves.

Notice the small lateral branches are seriously weeping while the strong laterals are more upright.

The leaves are alternately arranged, 1.5-3" long, ovate to deltoid or rhomboid shaped with serrated margins and the tip can be (but not always) very much acuminate.

Twigs are reddish-brown with lots of whitish glands.

Male flowers in a 2-3" long catkin overwintering, usually in 3's. Female emerging in spring, red color and erect on lateral branches. These are the male catkins, the image below is the catkins open.

Fruit are little nutlets retained in the same structure as the female flowers, with a distinct bract separating each fruit, looks sort like a fleur de lis. We used to pull the seeds and bracts off the stalk and put them down our friends shirts.

Not one of the better birches for winter interest as the black starts earlier than other 'white bark birches". The bark is chalky and comes off in very thin sheets. Along with the fruit we used to pull the bark off in strips.

Fantastic fall colors of various yellows, this was up north and they do not color like this here.

Many cultivars available. 'Dalecarlica' is the cutleaf birch which I will cover later. 

'Youngii' is a popular weeping cultivar. This one is in Capitola.

There are several purple leaved ones floating around. 

 The little dwarf one is fun. 'Trosts Dwarf'.

There are other birch trees here, from what I have seen, in decreasing popularity, B. jacqumontii, B. nigra, B. pendula 'Dalecarlica', B. papyrifera.

Misidentification: Other birches perhaps, the B. jacquemontii looks pretty similar but the young twigs are hairy and the buds are short rather than long. B. papyrifera is pretty similar but the leaves are not generally rhomboid nor does the tree have the weeping habit seen with B. pendula. I dont recall where this image came from, but you can see some of the typical birch leaf shapes.

Locations: Almost everywhere. At one time they were extremely popular (I still like them.)
Aptos

Nice ones on Humes

Santa Cruz

the one on Mission is pretty nice, and just a block away towards downtown you can find a grove of cutleaf birches as well as a jacquemontii (white bark birch) on the other side of the street.