| Venture to the roadway below the Brunet Pavilion and there
are delights aplenty. Surrounded by conifers from North America, the Sassafras, though
small, is aglow with fiery celebration. From seed, wild collected
in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States in 1980, this specimen was planted in 1985.
Deep fissured bark may add to its charm in later life however, the sometimes-lobed and
richly autumn toned leaves will always give pleasure. Reaching 10 metres or more, the
aromatic leaved sassafras is prone to suckering and prefers a deep, rich, well-drained
soil. A ‘spring tonic’ was made in bygone years from the roots and bark. The
Choctaw Indians of Louisiana used a powder prepared from the leaves to flavour gumbo soup
and the distilled oil is employed as a perfume.
Widespread and common in the warm, moist late Cretaceous to mid Tertiary
periods the plant family Lauraceae has many ‘primitive’ characteristics and is
closely related to the family Monimiacae [Atherospermataceae] to which the aromatic,
native Sassafras, Doryphora sassafras and the Black or Southern Sassafras, Atherosperma
moschatum belong.
Don’t miss the proteas,
the salvias, the Japanese maples, the gentians, the vireya rhododendrons, the pitcher
plants and the early sasanqua camellias.
Jan Allen
Records Officer |
