Fantastic Tall Trees

Moreton Bay Fig by Caro Webster

Gardening friends are the best friends. Today’s post is the first of a planned series brought to you through my friendship with Caro Webster.

“When I sit under a tall, majestic tree something amazing happens. I feel embraced, calmed, part of something larger, transported.” Alison Kerr, 2010

Tall trees: awe-inspiring; humbling; grounding. Is there a place for tall trees, large trees, shade trees, in your garden?

Tall Tales of Trees

Nowadays, for many of us, tall trees, old trees, are the stuff of fantasy, something to read about, imagine, and dream of.

Indeed authors from Tolkien, through Piers Anthony, to Terry Pratchett use trees in their fantasy stories, trees with sentient powers, or protective tree spirits; as if large trees just aren’t a part of 21st century life. Fantasy is what sprang to mind when I first saw Caro’s Moreton Bay fig. There could be fairies living under a tree like this!

Roots of the Moreton Bay Fig by Caro Webster

The Strangler Tree

When these photos arrived from Caro, I just had to find out more. Did she plant this tree? Is it grown around the world? Would you want one in your garden?

Here’s some of what I learned. The Moreton Bay Fig is an amazing tall tree. It begins its life as a seed which lodges in the top of an already established host tree. Over the years the Moreton Bay fig grows larger and sends down roots to the ground. As the roots expand, the host tree is gradually strangled and eventually is enclosed and killed.

So much for plants being gentle creatures! I asked Caro to tell us more about Moreton Bay Figs and about this one, pictured above, in particular. I’m curious about what role it plays in her Australian garden and how it inspires her, and her kids, to spend time outdoors, time in nature.

Invasive Roots by Caro Webster

Caro Shares About This Fantastic Tree

Thanks Alison.  I can see you’ve done a bit of homework on the beautiful Ficus macrophylla.  Sadly the tree pictured isn’t in my garden! I would have to knock down the houses on either side of me to accommodate a beauty like this.

This particular tree is sitting precariously on a slope in a nearby street.  I’d estimate it to be around 60ft  tall, with a canopy around 50ft across.  But these trees can grow to over 200ft.

I suspect this tree started life as a seed dropped into the bough of another tree by a Rainbow Lorikeet or some such native Australian bird.  You can see it is crushing the surrounding sandstone work of a neighbour’s fence.  Its roots are incredibly invasive.

Trees on a Mission

These are trees on a mission!  The kids and I like this particular specimen as the enormous buttress roots are easy to climb and there are a number of staghorn ferns growing in the upper reaches of the tree.  My daughter and I imagine these to be fairy refuges.  We like playing an improvised game of snakes and ladders whilst we scale up and down the roots.

My daughter commented recently that this tree was like an inversed Whomping Willow (Harry Potter)!  Like you, we are transported to another place when we sit under trees such as this.  They calm us, refresh us and instantly connect us with our immediate environment.  They provide us with a sense of place, of belonging.

Flying Foxes, Birds, Beetles and Fig Wasps

Like all figs, this particular tree is host to so many creatures.  Flying Foxes, birds of all kinds, scurrying beetles and, of course, Fig Wasps, on whom they depend to pollinate their fruit.

A few facts for you.  The common name comes from Moreton Bay in Queensland. They are native to Australia and are found in mainly sub-tropical, tropical and temperate areas on the east coast of Australia.  Used commonly as a streetscape tree and in parks or other large public places, they are actually rare in private gardens because of their size.

See a Moreton Bay Fig, Get Inspired

The Botanic Gardens in Sydney has some truly breathtaking specimens.  And believe it or not, they can be bonsaied.  Now there’s a challenge!  They are planted around the world where conditions suit.  Their leaves are stiff and ovate/elliptic.  They have a really funky rusty-coloured underside.  Put simply, if I had the space, I’d grow one in a flash.

Thanks Caro, I think it would be wonderful to have a tree like this to visit with. Fortunately, we don’t have to travel to Australia to see a Moreton Bay Fig and get inspired. There’s a whole street of Moreton Bay Figs in Los Angeles, California. And the San Diego Natural History Museum has one too. I’d say they’d be perfect trees to picnic under on a warm, sunny, spring day.

Pick A Tree That’s Right!

When it comes to your own garden though, like Caro says, you really want to choose trees that fit. The best trees are going to be native trees and you need to consider the mature size the tree will grow to. A tall tree in the wrong place can be a giant headache. Exotics can be even worse than native trees, reproducing, spreading, and damaging environmentally sensitive areas which native critters depend on.

Ficus macrophylla has invasive potential and is already causing problems in Hawaii and New Zealand. While I thoroughly suggest that you start right now planting any large trees you’d like to have in your garden – they’re the first things you will want to plant, because they take so long to grow – you need to choose a tree which is good for your climate, and space, and which will support native wildlife. I will be sharing more on this later.

Are there tall trees in your garden or neighborhood? Do they inspire you to get outdoors? Which critters do you see around them?

Caro Webster is a life-long gardener, playoutdoors enthusiast, loving mom, and author of Small Fry Outdoors. You can visit with Caro and read more of her writing at Caro & Co and follow Caro on Twitter.

I’m excited to be working with Caro.

Related posts:

1. Tall Trees – Oak
2. Native Evergreen Trees for Kansas and Beyond
3. We Need Trees