The alluring scent of Pinus monophylla
If I could make a scented candle it would smell like the broken needle of a Pinus monophylla, the single-leaf pinyon pine.
My friend Doug Wilson introduced it to me on my first visit to the Oregon Garden in Silverton in 2015. The Willamette Valley is not a very friendly place for Pinus monophylla which prefers dry mountain ranges so the one in the Oregon Garden is a special treat.
The scent is a mix of pine, citrus and what I am calling the umami of smell. An undefinable scent that pulls all the other scents together and makes me never want to stop breathing in.
It might be fortunate for this tree that unless the needle is crushed or broken, one would never know it is so amazing. Otherwise there would be a mass harvest as hordes of olfactophiles raid the arid hills the of the west.
Pinus monophylla produces a pine nut similar to the Pinus pinea, the Italian stone pine. I wonder if the needles of the Italian Stone Pine smell just as good? I will have to go check it out. Let me know if you do too!
With the trees,
Maryann
Go-to Tools
One of my favorite tools for winter is my boot dryer! I can’t wear tall boots because they pinch a nerve in my foot and it feels like I sprained my ankle so I wear low cut waterproof shoes. But eventually they get wet inside and need to be dried out. Boot dryers run on low so I dry my shoes overnight and then they are nice and warm when I put them on in the morning.
Going-ons
On February 6, 2025 I will be teaching a class for the Gresham Japanese Garden about the Fundamentals of Pruning Conifers. It is on Zoom followed by an in person session inside the Gresham Japanese Garden. We love our conifers here in the Northwest! Register with the Gresham Japanese Garden.
Save the date for the North America Japanese Garden Association 7th International Japanese Garden conference October 15-18, 2025 in St. Louis, MO. It will be hosted by the Missouri Botanic Garden. I have been to each conference since the first at the Denver Botanic garden in 2012. Each one has been full of unique presentations, beautiful gardens, and amazing people who are generous with their knowledge and enthusiasm.
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