Here we are in that annual climatological interregnum, during which people and plants experience enough warm weather to get excited, but it’s still much too early for the threat of a freeze to have lifted. (And indeed, see later this week.)
Lots of trees are flowering. Most of the white ones you see this early are Bradford pears.
These were once popular landscape additions around here because of their pleasing shape, their spring and fall foliage, and their rapid growth rate. Now they’re poorly regarded because they’re fragile, and sprouts from the root systems of damaged trees are not sterile, but are instead Callery pears that eventually produce dense thickets and outcompete native flora. This article claims the Bradford pear is classified as an invasive species in Alabama, though the forestry commission page does not list it as such that I can see.
Oh, and apparently some people think they smell bad. I guess I’m immune. We have two, and I couldn’t tell you what they smell like.
Though I question how much of this could have been prevented with a little forethought, I mostly understand the present reasoning behind wanting to get rid of the tree. My first reaction is still to laugh. Why is that? Well, yes, I’m an ass, but why else?
Because people are really pissed off about the Bradford pear. I mean, people sound like they’re talking about child molesters going on about these trees, or even Satan himself.
I can’t recall ever seeing similar reaction about any other invasive plant species—or really, even any mention at all. Where is the privet rage? Why are my feeds not full of posts decrying the mimosa? Have any of these people bellyaching about Bradford pears ever heard of cogongrass? That seems like a much larger problem to me.
More importantly, how can we get people this worked up about adultery? Or domestic violence? Or human trafficking?
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This is interesting. I commented “Blooming Bradford pears smell like stale urine” three years ago on the post Thursday miscellanea #280 (linked above). This is contrary to my above comment.
Now that 2014 comment is a month and a half later in the year. Is there much difference there? Is it possible I smell it every year, but further into the spring, and just don’t give it much thought otherwise? I don’t know. I can’t say I notice anything now, in early March, that I would ascribe to the trees.
The invasive species list might be out of date…
http://www.forestry.alabama.gov/Publications/TREASURED_Forest_Magazine/2014%20Spring/The%20Ugly%20Truth%20about%20a%20Pretty%20Tree.pdf
I won’t have one on my property. They drop hugely messy berries all over the place that sprout into thorny little trees EVERYWHERE and then – after they finally get big and full – they split down the middle so you have half a tree in your yard. Nope.