Tri-Color Beech Tree ~ Dud to WOW

Driving through Dixon, IL 

we would always see this very lovely tree,

outside of a huge stately home.

My husband said it was a Tri-Color Beech tree.

Very slow growing and very expensive.

Here are a set of 3 trees for an example.

SO pretty.

             

  When the neighboring bank wanted to expand operations, 

they bought the house, 

tore the house down, and left the tree. 

(SMILE)

Now, my husband loves trees.

If you have seen our back yard, (the extra lot)

 it is loaded with trees.

Like, hoarding like. 

Like, I mean it!  

Two layers deep on the west side.

He thinks he has several acres back here.

(We live just barely out of city limits.)

What is he thinking?

Can you imagine mowing this?

There is absolutely no good pattern here.


and now I worry about ticks.

However, we do have some good looking trees.

This is a beautiful Colorado Blue Spruce.   

We shy away from these though.

  

Cytospora ~ canker disease common to blue spruce ~

took our three mature trees.

Lesson Learned:  Colorado Blue Spruce do better in Colorado.

That is why they call them Colorado Blue Spruce.

You get several drought summers in a row,

with very little moisture, extremely dry and hot,

  and these trees just can't take it.

Loved how they framed our daylillies ~ 

but they are gone now.

:(

  

Here is a Concolor.  We have many of these

in blue and green ~ they are great for our climate.

The needles are so soft

(wonderful if you are mowing in shorts.)

So after all of this, we decided to splurge.

Oh, did I forget to tell you?

My husband is also very frugal (public name)


 (or cheap as I call him)

so splurging is a very big deal.

Meet OUR Tri-Color Beech Tree.

Planted about four years ago in the front of our house.

 We were beginning to think we had a dud.

After all, it seemed to always bud out with 

brown, crusty leaves.

BUT, this year ~ WOW

Beautiful pink leaves!  

Our neighbors two houses down asked,

"when did you get the new tree?"

I truly believe it was the cooler spring and all the rain that 


made a  huge difference in turning our tri-color beech from a 


dud to WOW.