Saturday, March 15, 2008

I Love Redbud Trees

I love Redbud trees, when they bloom it’s a sure sign spring is not too far behind. I’ll get to enjoy them even longer this year than usually. We had to replace two of the three trees in the yard and the ones I purchased were not as far along in the blooming process as the originals so I will have later blooms to enjoy. The ones pictured here are the limbs I salvaged from one that was broken off at the base, I stuck them in a vase on the table. No need to let the blooms go to waste.

I’m not really sure why it’s called a Redbud, seems to me it should have been dubbed a Lavenderbud or a Magentabud tree. It’s believed that George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were the people that gave the Eastern Redbud its name. It’s often referred to as a Judas tree, but in actuality the Judas tree was a different species, Cercis Siliquastrum. After doing a little research on these trees I was able to find out that our trees are not Eastern Redbuds, although that is the name under which they were sold to us. Eastern Redbud leaves have a satin appearance and pointed shape tips, our trees have rounded glossy leaves. I noticed last year our leaves were different from our neighbor’s tree but I just brushed it off. Maybe someone out there that’s more knowledgeable can tell me our species.

I have always been fascinated with mythology and legend, so when ever I get the opportunity to incorporate it into my blog I do. Legend has it this was the tree Judas Iscariot hung himself from after betraying Christ. Each year in shame and remorse it weeps tears of blood-like blossoms close to Easter. In most all years it blooms slightly before the dogwood which has long been associated with what? That’s right, the crucifixion. Legend also goes on to say that the limbs of this tree would never be strong enough to hang another man.


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7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yeah, well I don't know why exactly, but the leaves of the redbud remind me of a tortoise shell. Random, I know, but I thought I'd share... ;0)

Rurality said...

I like them too. Yours are a little further along than ours! I was surprised recently to read that they are considered invasive in some areas -- out west I think, where they're not native.

Phillip Oliver said...

I love this tree too although I don't have one and now I'm afraid I probably don't have the space for one. Very nice photos - what kind of camera are you using?

Randy said...

Rural,
Those were forced blooms from a tree that was damaged in the storm. I cut off the limbs and brought them inside so I could enjoy them one last time.

Phillip,
I use a Sony DSC F717 Jamie bought me as a gift. I LOVE it, although I'm a novice and totally not smart enough to use it to it's full potential. Every now and then I get lucky.

Annie in Austin said...

Hi Randy & Jamie,

What a nice post - full of history!

We have three different redbuds - 'Forest Pansy', a purple-leaved cultivar of the Eastern redbud. The others are a Texas Whitebud and a Texas Redbud. The leaves on the Texas redbuds are less pointed and are shinier - they're supposed to take more heat and drought which is why they're recommended here.

We named our place Circus~Cercis because of these redbuds. This post has a photo of all three leaf types for comparison.

To add to the fun there's also an Oklahoma Redbud, which strongly resembles the Texas ones. So your redbud might be geared for Alabama heat!

Annie at the Transplantable Rose

Randy said...

Thank you Annie, looking at the links you posted I think ours most closely resemble the Oklahoma leaves. What do you think, do we have a match?

Anonymous said...

I was going to weigh in with the comment that your leaves look like our Texas redbud leaves: heart-shaped and glossy. But Annie never misses a plant ID, so I'd go with her Oklahoma redbud ID, even if it was tentative.

By the way, your tulip pics are lovely too!