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• Quercus phellos L. Quercus laurifolia Michx.

All through the heat of December, January and February a path through our North American Deciduous Woodland has been under construction. On Sunday 07 March 2004 Minister Bob Debus opened the Garden’s new bridge across Bells Line of Road. So, we celebrated the safe road crossing and opportunity to view our Natural Conservation Area that this structure affords. The bridge is at the end of the shady new path.

Planted between 1991 and 1994 the deciduous trees such as oaks, maples and ashes that line the new path are usually most admired in Autumn or Fall. Right now they provide us with another cause for celebration; the ability to protect ourselves from insolation.
Insolation
1) Exposure of an object to the Sun.
2) Intensity of incoming solar radiation incident on a unit horizontal surface at a specific level.
http://nsidc.org/arcticmet/glossary/insolation.html

The staff who worked in the record heat reported a 5°C drop in temperature under these trees.

The Willow Oak, Quercus phellos, is pictured on the left and the Laurel-leaved Oak, Quercus laurifolia, to the right. Both have long, narrow leaves. All the trees in our North American Deciduous Woodland were planted without irrigation and have been mulched with woodchip to retain soil moisture.

Jan Allen
Garden Information Officer

Lycoris radiata, Along the Rose Walk	Hydrangea aspera subsp. aspera, On the Plant Explorers Walk	Salvia sp., In the Formal Garden
Anemone ‘Honorine Jobert’