The mulberry and the silver birch

These two trees,

Both of the Kingdom Plantae

And yet so different

In so many ways.

The silver birch:

Tall and straight.

Rising up in elegance,

She looks particularly beautiful

When standing in a group,

Or planted side by side

With other birches.

Her body is a kind of silver white,

Laid bare by the bark

That constantly peels

And comes adrift

From her slender trunk.

The mulberry:

So widely does he spread,

So heavily does he weigh

That he has no choice

But to recline

In majestic magnificence.

His colour is a kind of copper red,

His surface awash with gnarls

And knobbles and nodules

That snake with abandon

Across his sturdy frame.

These two trees,

Stark in contrast,

Equal in beauty.

I bow my head.

Links

Woodland Trust silver birch information

Silver birch Wikipedia page

Woodland Trust A-Z of British Trees

RHS mulberry tree information

Blog copyright Barbara Grehs

Published on 22 December 2020

#trees #plantae #silverbirch #betula #betulapendula #mulberry #mulberrytree #morus