Fringe tree at MSH

Posted on June 3, 2019 | 5 Comments

The unusual fringe tree, part of the arboretum of interesting trees at the former Medfield State Hospital site, is in full bloom now, and is worth a visit.

fringe tree-20190601

Former long time Town of Medfield Tree Warden, Ellis Allen, prepared and shared the tree map that appears below.  He did not note the fringe tree, so I added it.  When the fringe tree is not in bloom it is totally unremarkable.  There were two more much smaller fringe trees at the site, but they were cut down.  Ellis also did not include the interesting line of larch trees along the Charles River Link Trail path that he told me about.  That trail runs along the Charles from the Overlook to a hemlock grove high above the river.  That area just was not on Ellis’ map.  a row of many towering larchs line the path on the right just after crossing the brook.  Larchs look like evergreens, but are deciduous.

·~ s-Pecte-s o '1=-r-'RGz:-s A-r Mt:::JJ~f~ ~~. U.d5 .. Pc.T .• .P ..t L,. .. .. ' £ = Pfkfng lot I . . ,.. , .. '• ., ~ .,..h.., __ .. ,.. . r .t . ' __.._/ --- (._ __,. ... _______ ~~ :_TO ROUTE 27 ,_,·-0-S"r""P-IT-Ar. ROAr; ~ .. 'I ·.·· .• .. ·::: ·: ·~ • • • • ••• • • • 0 ' , •• ·-.•=·. .. • . . •.. • . . . . . ... ·•· ........ ~ .. : ,· .·. ,. I ~ ...· .; . :~;:~~· .·..· .·., (:~ "'·· f{)(')r.- I : SPECIES OF TREES AT MEDFIELD STATE HOSPITAL TREE# CO!vnviON NAME SCIENTIFIC NAME 1 American Beech Fagus grandifolia 2 American Elm Ulmus americana 3 Apple Malus spp. 4 Arbotyita" Thuja occidentalis s Black Cherry Prunus serrotina 6 Black Oak Quercus velutina 7 Canadian Hemlock Tsuga canadensis 8 Chinese Chestnut Castanea mollissima 9 Coloracto Blue Spruce Picea pungens glauca 10 Eum!L~ Beech . Fagus sylvatica 11 European PI etree Platanus occidentalis 12 Flowering Che Prunus spp. 13 Flowering Crabapp Malus spp. 14 Flowering Dogwood Comus florida 15 Fraiser Fir Abies fraseri 16 Goldenchain Tree Laburnum Vossi 17 Gray Birch Betula populifolia 18 Green Ash · Fraxinus pennsylvanica 19 Horsechestnut Aesculus hippocastinum 20 Japanese Maple Acer palmatum sp. 21 Japanese Tree Lila~ Syqnga reticulata 22 Little LeafLfuden Tilia cordauf · I 23 ~ocker.nutF.ficko~ Carya spp. 24 Moraine Locust Gleditsia tricanthos inennis 25 Mountain Ash Sorbus··americana 26 Northern Catalpa Catalpa speciosa . 27 Norway Maple Acer platanoides 28 Norway Spruce Picea abies 29 Paperbark Maple Acer griseum 30 Pin Oak Quercus palustris 31 Pitch Pine Pinus rigida 32 Red Cedar Juniperus virginiana 33 Red Oak Quercus rubrum 34 Red Pine Pinus resinosa 35 Sassafrass Sassafrass albidum 36 Saucer Magnolia Magnolia soulangiana 37 Scarlet Oak . -: Quercus coccinia - --- -- 38 S.iberian Elm Ulm~ paiVifol.ia 39 Sourwood Oxydendren arboreum 40 Sugar Maple Acer saccharum 41 Sweet gum Liquidamber styraciflua 42 Tuliptree ~. Liriodendren tulipfera 43 Tupelo Nyssa sylvatica 44 White. Ash Fraxinus americana 45 WhiteOak . Quercus alba· 46 White Pine Pinus strobus 47 Yellowwood Cladrastis I utea 48 White Fir Abies concolor 49 Red Maple Acerrubrum so White Birch Betula alba l)l F~~ee~~Tree map by Ellis Allen2 _Page_2

And here is what the canoe launch along that stretch of trail looked like when it was originally constructed.  Now the flat stones in the left photo are invisible in  the river under water and mud.

 

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5 responses to “Fringe tree at MSH”

  1. betty sanders | June 3, 2019 at 11:31 am |

    Hi Pete, There are two varieties of Fringe trees–a native one Chionanthus virginicus–which is quite hardy here and Chionanthus retusus or Chinese fringe tree. They are both lovely, but the native species turns yellow in the fall and is a source of pollen for native insects (which is a good thing!) Now I want to go up to there and take a look. Betty

    On Mon, Jun 3, 2019 at 11:11 AM Medfield02052’s Blog wrote:

    > Selectman Osler “Pete” Peterson posted: “The unusual fringe tree, part of > the arboretum of interesting trees at the former Medfield State Hospital > site, is in full bloom now, and is worth a visit. Former long time Town of > Medfield Tree Warden, Ellis Allen, prepared and shared the tree map tha” >

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  2. Rosemary Obrien | June 3, 2019 at 6:46 pm |

    Larch not Lark?

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    • Selectman Osler "Pete" Peterson | June 3, 2019 at 7:01 pm |

      Thanks Rosemary. I already caught that one myself and changed it on the blog, but too late to change what already went out. Sometimes my head gets to funny places.

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    • Selectman Osler "Pete" Peterson | June 3, 2019 at 7:03 pm |

      Yes to larch. There are also a bunch of larch trees in South Natick, I think near the rectory for the now disbanded Catholic church.

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