Diospyros kaki 'Fuyu' - Fuyu Persimmon

The 'Fuyu' Persimmon tree is much like the 'Hachiya' except the fruit are less pointed, and from an eating perspective, less astringent. Trees typically growto 25' with an equal spread forming a rounded, oval or umbrella habit.  While I have not read others mention the spring or summer color of the leaves, these trees all seem to have yellowish foliage. Trees will reliably develop wonderful fall color.

Leaves are deciduous, simple, 3-5" long, ovate to elliptical shaped, entire margins, dark glossy green with distinct veins with a slight leathery texture. Very attractive in summer.

Especially attractive in the fall as they turn to yellow and orange.

Trees are monoecious, male and female flowers blooming in the spring to summer.

Fruit is a large orange berry, 3" wide, but about 2" tall, looking like a squatty apple. Retains its large green calix.

Stems originally slightly hairy, eventually without hairs. Dark rich brown with large lenticels.

Bark is great on all the persimmons.


Misidentification:
As a persimmon I doubt it, but cultivars are another matter. Distinguishing between 'Fuyu' and 'Hachiya' is easy if you see fruit, otherwise you are on your own. There are lots of 'Fuyu' like cultivars available.

If you have a different cultivar in a public space I would be very interested in seeing them.

Location:

Aptos
7535 Soquel Dr.

Corralitos
Corralitos Rd close to the Market, across the street is a row of both cultivars.

Santa Cruz
1104 King St
935 High St

Acacia retinodes - Water Waddle

The Water Waddle is a fast growing evergreen tree or large shrub reaching 20 x 20' forming a rounded to oval shape, if growing alone, but these seem to be in groves. Makes a nice fine textured screen. Reportedly blooms throughout the season, and called Ever-blooming Acacia.

Leaves are evergreen, alternate, simple, narrowly lanceolate to oblanceolate, slightly curved, dull gray green, no distinct upper or lower surface, slightly enlarged area near the base of the petiole.

Flowers are pale yellow or cream colored, fragrant, in clusters. Clusters (heads) are arranged in racemes with 5-9 heads per inflorescence. Other sites call this the ever-blooming wattle as it may bloom sporadically year round. My pictures are from winter, and only a few branches had flowers.

Fruit is a pod with some restrictions between the seeds. 4-5" long.

Young stems are bright red-mahogony eventually turning gray.

Trunk reportedly scaly at maturity but these trees are pretty young and smooth.

Wirilda Wattle is another common name.
There are two botanical varieties, but they seem to look alike, one preferring wetter soils.

Misidentification:
While taking pictures of the flowers one day a neighbor wanted to know what I was doing. After informing him he told me the tree was a black acacia and since he worked for a tree company for 30 years he was sure. But if you step back and look at the leaves, and flowers, he was not far off.

Odd Acacias are tough, helps to see the flowers, pods and leaves.

Location:
Santa Cruz
Harper St. at the east end, past the sign that says private road (oops) across from Daniva Ct. and above all the trash cans.

Bauhinia × blakeana - Hong Kong Orchid Tree

I first encountered this specimen while investigating Oceanview Ave. on a tip from a student about the huge trees. I was in Oceanview park and came out to find this poor little tree with only a few leaves, looking like it might be dead soon. Put in my notes that is was there but didn't think much about it. I went back in late November only to find it in bloom and doing quite well. I doubt it will reach its full potential here, it's reportedly damaged with temperatures of 20F. Trees reportedly semi-deciduous or completely deciduous, 15-20' tall and usually wider that tall, dome shaped. Looks a bit coarse with its long branches going in all directions.

Leaves are semi-deciduous or deciduous, alternate, simple, and more or less round in outline. The tip of the leaf is deeply lobed at least 1/3 of the way to the base. All the veins originate at the base of the leaf and radiate outward. Generally bluish green in color and often folded up like a clam closing or a butterfly.

Fragrant flowers appearing in fall into the winter and blooming until spring. Magenta color, five petals and sepals, 5+ inches wide, asymmetrical, long stamens with curving tip and female part even longer and more curved.

Stems some what zig-zagging at the nodes, smooth and green or brown in the fall, but new strong growth may have copper colored hairs. Vegetative buds look naked but I have not seen references to that.

Misidentification:
I have read references suggesting the leaves can look like Cercis canadensis but deeply lobed at the tip. I think the give away that its not a Cercis is the leaves folded up and deeply lobed. Now the trouble begins, as there are more than on species of Bauhinia, B. variegata has smaller leaves, less shallowly lobed to almost not lobed, smaller flowers, but same color flower or very pale to almost white. The pictures I have seen of B. variegata in full bloom the flowers all look very light colored, almost white.

I am open to being schooled on this plant. Doubt the owner will read this and most don't know what is planted in their yards.

Location:
Santa Cruz
113 Oceanview Ave.

Prunus campanulata - Taiwan Cherry Tree

The Bell-Flowered or Taiwan Cherry tree is a beautiful site in late winter to early spring. I recall seeing this one out of the corner of my eye and quickly circling around on my bike to see what the heck was so red in late winter. They are small deciduous flowering trees with beautiful deep red colored flowers growing to about 15' tall and slightly narrower with spreading branches. Not commonly seen. Blooms really really early, with very dark red flowers.

Same plant in the fall (have not seen any others), no fall color showing up by November though they should have some red color.

Leaves are deciduous, alternate, simple, 2-4" long, narrowly ovate to oval-lanceolate shaped, finely serrated margins, with a gland at the base of the leaf blade and dark green in summer. Deeply set veins.

Buds are clustered at the tips, sharp pointed, reddish in color.

Stems are smooth with lots of horizontal lenticles. This plant was grafted so the main trunk is something else.

Emerging just prior to or with the leaves, the 3/4" diameter flowers are in clusters of 2-6. You can see some of last years leaves and the new ones just emerging.

Produces small red fruit, 1/2" long. I have not seen them.

The popular 'Okame' Cherry has P. campanulata as one of the parents.

Misidentification:

Foliage looks like any Japanese cherry, but smaller. I am basing my identification on the flower color, leaf shape and the tree was in full bloom in February.

Location:

Aptos:

411 Townsend

Ilex × altaclerensis 'Lawsoniana' - Lawson HIghclare Holly

A pretty variegated variety of the hybrid holly, this plant does not seem to have its own common name. The common name Highclare holly seems to be used for all the cultivars of this hybrid cross. Oh well. I am going to make up one. Regardless of the name, this trees is evergreen, narrow upright and usually a pretty tight habit, growing 25' tall. Grown for its variegated foliage and pretty fruit.

Leaves are alternate, simple, narrowly ovate or elliptical shaped, spineless entire margins and yellow coloration in the center of the leaf. Coloration not uniform leaf to leaf.

Commonly reverts to all green leaves, so pruning is in order.

Flowers are dioecious, these being female. Small, white in clusters on new growth.

Fruit is a red berry, clustered in groups.

Stems are green. (This is from a branch with non variegated leaves.)

Bark is silver gray, smooth with some wrinkling at the branch collars.

Like so many other holly trees, this one is a hybrid between I. aquifolium x I. perado.

Misidentification:

There are several other yellow variegated hollies, some of which the variegation is on the margins, others like these. I made my identification from all the descriptions indicating the leaves revert to green, which this tree does.

Location:

Aptos

408 Gay Rd.

Manihot grahamii - Hardy Tapioca

Hardy Tapioca, or Cassava, is a hardy tropical plant added to landscapes for a cool tropical look. Reportedly dying to the ground in cold winters, sprouting up to a large shrub, flowering and fruiting in one season. In warmer climates it dies back to woody parts. Eventually growing with an upright to spreading habit. Reportedly a very fast grower, prolific seed producer and weedy in tropical areas. Potential of reaching 15 or 20' tall in a matter of a few years. That will be interesting to see as one was just planted down the street from me.

Leaves are deciduous, alternate,  palmately compound, almost round in outline, 8-10" across. The leaflets can be almost lanceolate or shaped like these, which I have no idea how to describe but some mention Snowflake like. Leaves have red petioles and the centers of the leaf is pretty cool looking. Most references say 11 leaflets, but plants don't read books. This is a great looking leaf, though the one above was not anywhere near as snowflake like.

Flowers are quite interesting. The whole inflorescence appears reddish brown from a distance. I thought I had missed the flowers when I was approaching.

Turns out the stalks are reddish brown. Individual flowers are yellowish red, bell shaped with flared petals(?).

Thanks to Luen Miller for help identifying this specimen.

Misidentification:
Pretty hard to miss the leaves if you can get close enough to them.

Location:
Aptos
420 Clubhouse Dr. Brand new as of 11/14 (moved with the original owner)

Santa Cruz
212 Pennsylvania St

Banksia seminuda - River Banksia

The River Banksia is one of the largest growing banksias, reaching 50-60 feet tall with a straight trunk. This one has been limbed up, my hunch is to keep people from sleeping under. 

One of many beautiful specimens at UCSC arboretum.

Leaves are evergreen, alternate, simple, 3-5" long, narrow, leathery, dark green upper and white lower surfaces, margins light serrated.

Looks good from underneath.

Flowers in the fall, red/orange flowers in 8" long by 3" wide inflorescences with hundreds of individual flowers in pairs. Flowers can also be yellow, UCSC arboretum was selling some last year.

Fruits are aggregated into woody clusters looking like a cone. Few flowers actually produce fruit. Those that do are larger and when they open remind one of clams. Love the coloration of the "cone".

Remnants of the flowers with no fruit maturing.

Bark is interesting, fissured, orangish and gray.

Misidentification:
Other Banksias I guess. I have seen B. integrifolia around quite a bit, but they have smaller clusters of flowers, and not orange.

Location
Santa Cruz
1111A River Street (Highway 9)

Corymbia maculata - Spotted Gum

The spotted gum is a large eucalyptus relative with a long straight trunk, somewhat like lemon scented gum, with the foliage up high forming a rounded to spreading canopy and beautiful bark. I have not seen others in town but they are likely to exist, this one caught my eye when it was shedding its bark, otherwise I might have missed it. So much for my observational skills.

Evergreen foliage is alternate, simple, lanceolate, 5-9" long, no distinct upper or lower surface. Dark green and somewhat leathery, which is supposed to separate them from C. citriodora. This is from a small tree and is not very large. New foliage has a reddish color.

Flowers are white, small, in  in winter or spring in an elongating cluster but terminating in clusters of 3. Each bud has a pointed cap.

Fruits are urn shaped capsules, small like C. citriodora.


The bark is smooth most of the year, but sheds in "polygonal flakes". Most of the year the smooth bark is white, grayish or pink, but during the shedding it looks greenish.

Misidentification:
C. citriodora for sure, until the bark peels.

Location:
Seacliff Dr East, between Sea Terrace Way and Seacliff Dr before it turns into Center.