Field Notes: Tuliptrees bloom

The tuliptrees are blooming. Liriodendron tulipifera, also known as the yellow-popular, is one of the tallest tree in North America, and definitely in our area. These two blooms are from Elizabeth’s Tuliptree in Nelly’s Lawn in Prospect Park. I think this is the only named tree in the park. It’s been much battered, losing major limbs. The red-tail hawks who nest in a nearby pine often perch here (it looks like this pair of hawks have triplets this year, just like last year.)

Usually, the flowers are fairly high; in the woods, young tuliptrees shoot up fast toward the sunlight, their mitt-like leaves enormous. The result is often a very straight trunk.
Ants are often found in the flowers. The blooms have a delicate perfume that reminds me of something from my childhood, but I can’t place it. Perhaps a madeleine-flavor.