Tree Candles

   As a kid, I often overheard Mom saying that the pine trees were decorated with their candles.  When I first heard this, I began to get excited, even though, I knew it was springtime.  To me, decorating any sort of tree meant Christmas and I had seen the candles that used to be used on Christmas trees "back in the day"...so putting two and two together, I came up with the wrong answer.  It was not Christmas and Mom was not referring to wax candles to be lit on the tree. Crazy talk...but she was not wrong...I was wrong.  She was referring to the new growth shoots on the pine trees in the woods. The new growth on pine trees does indeed resemble the Christmas Tree candles of long ago and...get this...those new shoots are called candles!

  Here is a tidbit of information about those "candles" for anyone who wishes to have a small, well maintained pine tree in the garden.  Once those candles appear, it is time to do some trimming which is actually called "candling" in the gardening world.  Usually, the new shoots can be broken by hand or using just hand snips.  Trimming back these shoots will encourage thicker branches and, also, inhibit rampant growth overall...at least, so say the experts.  I have never tried it as I do not have space in my gardens for a squatty pine tree.  In fact, I wish the few tall ones that are near the house were gone altogether.  Pine trees and hurricanes do not play nicely and the trees usually wind up snapped.  

  While I have no plans to go out breaking the candles from the tops of pine trees, the sight of them brings back some fond memories of taking walks in the woods with Mom.  Pop taught me most of what I know about planting but it was Mom who taught me the sweet names and some folklore about things found in the woods.  I sure miss Mom and Pop.  As I age, that missing becomes stronger and stronger.  I miss their knowledge, their strict rules and, mostly, their kind ways. Very few people are like that nowadays.  Anyway...look at the pine trees!  They are decorated with candles just about now and it is not even Christmas yet!

Candles on my tree!

Back in the day, Mom used to always herald in spring with the announcement that the pine tree candles were visible.  When I was a wee tot, I had no clue what this meant.  I would stare and stare at those pine trees with the full expectation of seeing one lit up like a Christmas tree.  It never happened.  Stare as I may, I never once saw any candles..lit or not..in the top of the pine trees.  I began to ponder if this was akin to the faces Granddad would tell me were peering out from flowers.  Adults always seemed to be telling youngsters things that just were not so!  Faces in flowers..candles in trees..who ever heard of such things?  Once I aged a bit, it finally dawned on me just what Mom seeing.

Come to find out, Mom was actually using a proper term for the new growth shoots on pine trees.   The new growth shoots are usually covered with reddish-brown or white scales and point upwards toward the sky.  From a distance, they do resemble the old-fashioned candles that used to adorn Christmas trees.  (Of course, they are not lit like the Yule candles!)  Later as the shoots mature, they turn green and start to spread outward.  These are the needles that we are used to seeing on pine trees.

While Mark and I were out on one of our daily hikes about the hillside, he called my attention to the candles in the pines.  Hmmm...this cannot be!  It is far too late for the trees to be candling!  I looked up and, sure enough, one pine was in the late stage of candling.  When we examined nearby pines, we noticed that those had long since put on their needles.  Those trees already had large cones dangling from the limbs.  Why was one tree so much later with its new growth?  I could understand if the late tree had poorer soil or was exposed to harsher weather conditions but all should be the same with each tree in this stand.  They are so near together that even soil conditions should be identical.  Did one tree just forget to wake up this spring?  Perhaps our crazy, mixed up weather confused the tree?  Who knows?  Then, again, perhaps this tree is smart.  Tonight's weather forecast calls for more winter-like dealings!  Not so cold as our neighbors to the north but still cold for here on the Bayou.  Brrr...you have to be kidding me!  In the forties?  Tonight?  In May?  Maybe that pine tree should light those candles.  A little warmth might feel good!