What's Up in the Neighborhood?

Acacia Trees?

Whose Idea Was This? Going west on Buena Vista Avenue from Satori, just after you cross the Highway 101 overpass, you come upon this Lone Acacia. Most of the time it's easy to not notice her at all. But for a few weeks in Spring (which is happening here now ... a bit ahead of schedule), she erupts in such a colorful display that you just have to stop and take notice ... maybe wonder what her story is ... how she got here ... if she notices

Colonel Mustard in the Acacia Tree. Yellow seems to be the color of first choice in Spring ... daffodils ... mustard ... Acacia. What the heck is an Acacia tree anyway? Wikipedia says: "Pod-bearing trees, with sap and leaves typically bearing large amounts of tannins and condensed tannins that historically in many species found use as pharmaceuticals and preservatives."  Who knew? But wait ... there's more.

Little Yellow Cotton Balls. They feel soft and feathery and look great with the fern-like leaves. And they smell like mustard ... strong and mellow at the same time. And lo and behold, somebody else noticed the smell too. Wikipedia says that "Acacia farnesiana (which this is) is used in the perfume industry due to its strong fragrance. The use of Acacia as a fragrance dates back centuries." Who knew we had a perfume factory in the hood? But wait, there's more.

Tree of Many Secrets. Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acacia goes on and on:  Acacia shoots used in soups, curries, omelettes and stir-fires in Burma, Laos and Thailand ... Acacia used as a symbol in Freemasonry, to represent purity and endurance of the soul, and as funerary symbolism signifying resurrection and immortality ...  Acacia (mainly bark, root and resin) are used to make incense for rituals, mainly in India, Nepal, and China including in its Tibet region. It's smoke is thought to keep demons and ghosts away and to put the gods in a good mood (always a good thing) ... And both people and elephants like an alcoholic beverage made from Acacia fruit. OK, so now we're getting somewhere.

Who Knew? So what have we learned here? First, it's not a bad idea to pay attention to all the characters in your neighborhood. Two, there's always more going on than what meets the eye. And, three, how amazing is Nature and all the places where we intersect with Nature?

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