Updates


Five months after I first reported on it, the agave/century plant at the Botanical Gardens is getting ready to bust out with what I hope will be some really stinky blooms. (Monstrous plants like this always have disgustingly foul efflorescences, right?) It survived some single digit temps in April, and now it's blooming right when it should, giving people a reason to come to the gardens when they don't need (or maybe even want) the heat of the greenhouses. Exciting! I'm sure this sort of thing is old hat to many of you, but I'm psyched.

The news on our endangered street tree is not so good. My email did elicit some advocacy from friends and neighbors, but the arborist who inspected it is sticking to his guns. I feel the rush to judgment is at least partially due to fear that the funds will not be available next year if it does turn out the tree is too far gone. But that is just incredible from the looks of it. It's also funny the way someone—I have no idea who!—keeps ripping down the sign that indicates the tree is on the death list. They need it because it is also meant to stop anyone from parking in front of it, thus blocking the equipment. I love silver maples—so much more distinguished looking than the Norway maples.

Comments

Stratoz said…
our planned visit to the botanical gardens got canceled for the WALK. we need another trip to Buffalo. as for the missing sign... it makes me want to find my Edward Abbey books!
as for Norway maples... taking one down was the first act of gardening when we bought our house..(they are listed as invasive here in PA) second act was digging out the roots.
chuck b. said…
Defintely old hat here, but that inflorescence does seem especially tall. I would be very surprised if it has any odor.
EAL said…
It's a good 25 feet. It's sticking out of a glasshouse roof.
I would like to say that we'll come back to see it bloom but I doubt it will happen. Hope you can post more pictures when it does. I'm still dumbfounded that anyone would plant and then care for a plant that takes a 100 yrs to bloom and then dies. Are there any plans to plant another?

I'm sorry that after losing so many trees last year that the city feels the need to take down more.
lisa said…
Boy, I'd love to see that agave bloom in person! Silver maples are pretty, but the one in my sister's "hellstrip" is a beast, with woody suckers reaching out in all directions and popping up very far from the tree. Maybe there are less menacing cultivars, but she sure hates hers!

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