It's getting towards the end of July and northwest Louisiana is under a heat advisory. Its hot, hot, hot. What better time to talk about shade trees? The bois d'arc (
Maclura pomifera) is largely known and recognized by its unusual fruit: a mostly inedible green, softball-sized
syncarp. These drop to the ground in late summer and early fall. Although the fruit might not be edible, we can appreciate the great work these trees are doing to provide relief from the sun.
We have a solitary bois d'arc in the arboretum collection. In 2000, Ed Leuck collected bois d'arc fruit from East Kings Highway in Shreveport, quite close to Centenary's campus. Those seeds germinated in the campus greenhouse, and the most promising specimen was planted as a small tree in 2004. We presume it to be male, since it hasn't produced fruit. This species is
dioecious, individual trees are either male or female, unlike many species of plants. The tree is doing so well, and the fruit of the species is so odd, that adding a female counterpart to the collection might be in order.
 |
| The Maclura pomifera in the arboretum collection is approximately 16 years old. It's a healthy tree, helping to shade the paths of the arboretum. All photos were taken at approximately 11 a.m., on a very hot, sunny July day. |
 |
| Not much grows under this bois d'arc, probably because of the heavy shade and the slope of the hill. Unfortunately this creates an erosion problem, exposing tree roots. The orange root of the bois d'arc can be seen in the photo above. |
 |
| The roots of the bois d'arc are characteristically orange. |
 |
| Only a little light hits the ground under the bois d'arc. On the other side, the concrete sidewalk is brightly lit by the late morning sun. |
 |
| Looking up, the branches of the bois d'arc jut out in every direction from the trunk, a much wilder display of branches when compared with last week's tree-of-the-week, Fagus grandifolia. |
 |
| Branchlet of Maclura pomifera blocking the sun |
 |
| The simple leaves of Maclura pomifera have an egg-like shape but are distinctly pointed at the tip. |
 |
| When working near a bois d'arc tree, one must watch out for the thorns. |
You can find additional images of this tree
here.
For more information about this species consult the following:
Louisiana Plant Identification and Interactive Virtual Tours
Texas Native Plants Database
United States Department of Agriculture
