The roble beech (Nothfagus obliqua) from South America,
with its 'autumn' leaves on in mid-July in the Eco Garden.
Yesterday was so warm and sunny in Port Levy that I baked an Onion and Cheddar Pie (recipe coming) and we went down to the little beach at the head of the harbour (only there when the tide is out), spread out the picnic rug, and picnicked on pie followed by mandarins.
When I got back to the garden I noticed how pretty the remaining leaves of the roblé tree (Nothofagus obliqua) were looking in the full sun. I also wondered about why they were still on the tree in July, when almost all the other deciduous trees are totally bare. It may not be good news, since a bit of book and Web research into the genus Nothofagus shows that most of the species in this genus prefer it cold, and are very reluctant reproducers if they are over-heated.
What will climate change mean for these great mountain trees, which are the dominant vegetation in mountain forests in southern South America, southern New Zealand and southern Australia, and are also found in the high mountains of Papua New Guinea. They have already suffered so much from logging that they have been pushed back into the most rugged mountain lands, and few people in their countries of origin really appreciate what great trees they are.
The generic name means 'false beech', so called because they were originally thought to be part of the Fagus or 'true' beech genus, but were later reclassified when the differences between these (deciduous) northern hemisphere trees and their (mostly evergreen) southern hemisphere cousins were properly recognised. Read all about the New Zealand beeches and see more pictures on the Te Ara site.
I have two New Zealand beech trees (N. fusca/red beech/tawhairaunui and N. menziesii/silver beech/tawhai) and two exotic ones (N. obliqua/roblé from South America and N.cunninghamii/myrtle beech from Australia) in my little mixed woodland. The red beech and the roblé were planted in 2003 and have grown 5-6 metres in that time, which I think is pretty good going. I would have more of this lovely genus if I had the room, but they need space to go outwards as well as upwards, and I want to squeeze a few other favourites in this space as well.
The New Zealand flora contains more striking trees than the beech, such as the kauri and the cabbage tree, but to my eyes nothing can beat the tawhairaunui/red beech for solid yet graceful beauty.
The tawhairaunui planted in 2003 is now too big to photograph the whole tree close up.
The myrtle beech planted in 2007 is still getting ready for its growth spurt.
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