Eastern Redcedar

Juniperus virginiana

Basic Information:
The eastern red cedar is actually a part of the juniper family. The genus for cedar is cedrus, and this tree is juniperus. They can grow 40-50 ft tall. The bark has a somewhat smooth feeling, and it is very peeling. This tree is often used for ornamental purposes. As shrubs they are not very tall at 10-20 ft tall. The trunks go straight up for about 20 ft and then branches turn away in a pyramidal shape. The berries are blue-ish grey and are often eaten by birds, so this is a very widespread tree. Grows in eastern to central North America and grows abundantly in zones 2-9.

Uses:
The red wood is sometimes used to make red dye. The powdered leaves can be used to treat warts. In different ways, the eastern red cedar can be used to treat arthritis, bronchitis, catarrh, debility, dropsy, rashes, rheumatism, and skin ailments. A mixture of the leaves and twigs can be boiled and inhaled as a treatment for bronchitis. A boiled concoction of the bark can be used to treat skin rashes. Infusing the berries and wild ginger can be a treatment for asthma.The leaves can be used for, believe it or not, helping the urination process. Burning the leaves and inhaling the smoke can aid against colds.

Good bye for now!

Sources:
http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/duke_energy/Juniperus_virginiana.html
http://www.gpnc.org/eastern.htm

Tulip Tree

Liriodendron tulipifera

Basic Information:
The tulip tree, also known as the tulip poplar, and American tulip tree, can grow higher than 165 ft. These pictures came from two different trees, but both of which I found in my backyard. The larger one sure could have been a hundred and sixty-five feet, but the younger was probably seventy-five. The wood is light yellow to brown, and this specimen grows rather quickly. It is actually a part of the magnolia family, and not a poplar at all. The flower is yellow and/or orange and tulip shaped with six petals.

How Is It Used?

Settlers earlier on called the tulip tree wood "canoe wood" because, as it says in the nickname, it was often used to make boats and ships. In Virginia, sometimes the tulip tree is still called the "canoe tree" because Native Americans would make dugout canoes out of this wood.

Native Americans used the leaves for a poultice for sores and to make an ointment for inflammation. They also made a tea from the bark to reduce fever and help indigestion. Early colonists adopted the uses for this tree, and made a tincture of the root and bark to treat rheumatic fever.
The tulip tree was a popular choice by early pioneers for log homes because it is water and termite resistant. Log cabins made from tulip tree have been known to last over a hundred years.

White Oak-6/14/11

Quercus Alba

Basic Info:
White oak, or quercus alba, is usually found in the wild in eastern North America. It is usually 80-100 feet tall, though the tallest is 144 feet. The average width is 3-4 feet. It is not unusual for this specimen to sometimes be as wide as it is tall. Usually that is when it is standing by itself, outside of the forest. If it is grown purposely, the limbs branch out, nearly parallel to the ground.If it is in the woods, the trunk goes straight up and then branches out at acute angles. The leaves, on average, are about 5-8.5 inches long, and 2.75-4.5 inches wide. The bark ranges from white(rarely) to dark grey, though it is usual light grey. It lives to be 600 years old. The wood is light brown, and often, and sadly, used often for furniture and flooring.

Oak Lore:
These deities thought that this oak tree was sacred: Zeus/Jupiter, Pan, The Dagda, Hera. Dryads, of Greek mythology, were especially associated with oak trees. They would wear crowns of oak leaves, and dance around the oak trees merrily. Druids thought that inside the oak trees the spirits of the dead lived, so they thought that if you chopped down an oak tree the spirits were released into the world to cause happiness, pain, grief, joy, etc. Druids would conduct secret rituals amidst an oak grove, and they thought that everything that grew on the sacred tree was sacred itself, such as mistletoe, moss, and so on and so forth. Oaks were the homes of faeries, and they absolutely worshipped the tree. They wore the acorn caps as hats, and used the leaves for autumn celebration. In Sherwood Forest--yes, that really exist, and it has since the end of the last ice age--the oldest oak tree lives at 800-1000 years old.
If you put 2 acorns in a bowl together, a couple can see what will happen in their future. This is just superstitious, so don't go telling other people that this is true! If the acorns float together, the couple will marry. If the acorns drift apart, the couple will do the same. If the acorns sink, then I don't know what to tell you.
This is all I have to say about White Oaks and oak trees. See you next time! (not really see, but...) Good Bye!

Sources:
http://witcombe.sbc.edu/sacredplaces/trees.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_oak
http://celticmythpodshow.com/blog/oak-tree-in-lore-and-myth/