SPRINGHOUSE FARM JOURNAL
By:Heather Lovett
Sometimes, while researching a certain plant, I’ll come across a reference that sends me off on unexpected tangents. Such was the case recently when I decided to learn all I could about sourwood (Oxydendrum arboreum), a little-known native tree with attractive fall foliage.
Before I knew what had happened, I was reading about thixotropy and foulbrood in "The ABC and XYZ of Bee Culture;" scanning the Web page of a wild-looking character who sells "Red Neck & Hillbilly Souvenirs" from his roadside stand in Fancy Gap, Va.; discovering (in Cyberspace) a "groove-oriented" rock band called Sourwood Honey; and ordering a "Six-Pack O’ Bears" from the Georgia Honey Corporation.
It all started when a small mountain ash tree near our house died, leaving us without shade for our lawn chairs and tables. Mountain-ash (Sorbus) can be a pretty tree, with fern-like compound leaves, fragrant flowers in spring, and orange-red berries in the fall, but ours had been unhealthy for years, and even in the best of times was somewhat messy, dropping petals, leaf debris, or berries de||ý012 . 0000.00þ||pending on the season. I needed a replacement, and sourwood, with its similar small size and year-round interest, was a promising candidate.
Reading about sourwood you can’t help but notice all the superlatives: "one of the most beautiful native American small flowering trees," "an outstandingly graceful all-season tree," and "an extraordinary specimen tree" are typical comments. In his book "The Garden in Autumn," Allen Lacy declares: "If I could plant only one tree, I can easily name it-our native sourwood … Its fall foliage and seed heads are stunning together, but sourwood is excellent in any season, including winter, when its seeds lend continuing textural interest."
Clothed in shiny green lance-shaped leaves, sourwood has a pyramidal form, growing very slowly to an ultimate height of about 50 feet. In midsummer, bell-shaped white flowers bloom in long, drooping clusters, the inspiration for one of sourwood’s many common names: lily-of-the-valley tree. These hanging bells somehow turn on their heads as they mature, becoming upright, pale-colored seed ||ý012 . 0000.00þ||pods dotted along the outstretched sprays. In autumn the leaves turn a beautiful burgundy-red, providing a dramatic contrast to the seed pods, which remain on the tree in winter.
Sourwood is native to the southern Appalachian Mountains, and is hardy from zone 5 to zone 9. A member of the Heath family (Ericaceae), it prefers well-drained, organic, acid soil (pH 4.0-5.5). Sourwood should be watered well during long dry spells because its roots are somewhat shallow, although established trees are less sensitive to drought. Full sun is recommended for the best fall color.
The leaves and twigs have a strong acidic taste (hence the common name), but in my research I learned that sourwood has a sweet aspect as well: its "flowers yield the famous sourwood honey." This little tidbit of information in my Peterson field guide piqued my interest and sent me to the library for books on beekeeping, which proved to be fascinating reading.
For instance, did you know that diluted honey has antibiotic properties due to the presence of ||ý012 . 0005.08þ||hydrogen peroxide? Or that heather honey is so thick it won’t drip out of an overturned bottle, but becomes liquid if the bottle is shaken-a peculiarity known as "thixotropy"? I also got sidetracked reading about foulbrood, a nasty (and foul-smelling) disease of hives; and about beeswax, which is favored by the Catholic Church for liturgical candles because it comes from "virgin" bees.
My source was "The ABC and XYZ of Beekeeping" by A. I. Root (first published in 1877). In the "sourwood" entry, I learned that Appalachian beekeepers look for stands of sourwood in the winter when the distinctive seed pods are easy to spot, and set up their hives under the trees. They put in fresh combs when blooming begins, and remove the honey-filled frames after the flowering season is over. "Many people drive long distances to purchase this marvelous honey," says A. I. Root, "and insist it is the best honey in the eastern United States."
At this point I was ready to get in the car and head south for a taste of sourwood honey (which doesn’t seem to be available around here), but instead I went shopping the modern way – on the Internet. I searched the Web using the key words "sourwood honey," and turned up the aforementioned rock band (I was unable to get any audio so I can’t comment on their music); and also Mountain Man, Inc. of Fancy Gap, Va., a colorful Web site where you can buy honey and molasses, country hams, old cars and trucks, lawn geese, Dalmatians, windmills, Rebel flags, the Amazing Turbo diet, whiskey barrels, and much much more!
There were a few other sites advertising sourwood honey, and I settled on the Georgia Honey Corporation, figuring it was the safest bet with my credit card. I’m now the proud owner of a Six-Pack O’ Bears ($8.99 plus shipping), a sampler containing one (bear-shaped) squeeze-bottle each of sourwood, tupelo, wildflower, orange blossom, tulip poplar, and gallberry honey.
I’ve tried only the sourwood, and although I probably couldn’t identify it in a blind taste test, I’m convinced it has a richer flavor than ordinary clover honey. By ||ý012 . 0000.00þ||next spring I hope to have a sourwood tree to go along with my sourwood honey, and maybe, just for fun, I’ll order a Sourwood Honey CD, to see what "groove-oriented" rock music is all about.
Sourwood sources: Fairweather Gardens: P.O. Box 330, Greenwich, 08323. (856) 451-6261. (Trees-$24.95 each plus shipping)
Wayside Gardens: 1 Garden ||ý012 . 0003.04þ||Lane, Hodges, S.C., 29695. (800) 845-1124, or www.waysidegardens.com (Trees-$34.75 each plus shipping)
Georgia Honey Corporation: (Honey-www.georgiahoney.com)
Mountain Man, Inc.: (Honey-www.mountainmaninc.com).