Now Something Completely Different: The Larch

by Rebecca Cuningham

Two types of trees dominate our modest back yard: the crabapple tree that once was a three foot high stick the year we arrived and the larches that may be as old as the house.

When we bought our home the outdoor plants had lain untended for several years except for the kindness of a few neighbors. My mother called it my secret garden. In a compost pile we found a fully functioning if slight rusty wheelbarrow we use to this day for wood chips and heavy loads.

The number of bulbs buried under overgrown plants was astounding. And the little leafless stick in the center bed, no doubt its genesis was a stolen apple from the neighbor’s tree buried by a squirrel. In the spring the blooms and fragrance are stunning. The crabapples are spitters but the birds and squirrels enjoy them down to the last pendulum hanging 25 feet high (8m).

Crabapples. Photo: Rebecca Cuningham
Crabapple Branches Photo: Rebecca Cuningham

Now for my two favorite trees on our isthmus plot; the twin larch. They are graceful and water loving. I’ve treated them well except for the year I used black plastic to smother the grass then reseeded it in the fall. I hadn’t realized how many tree roots were hidden under the lawn, deprived for a season. The tamaracks survived my novice error, thank goodness. I know to water them in dry spells now.

I’d watch Monty Python episodes with my dad growing up. He is a hilarious person to watch British comedies with because he laughs before, during, and after the funny bits. It is quite contagious. There is a running joke through one show where at the end of every skit, the narrator speaks and a tree photo flashes on screen. We would call it a tamarack, but on the other side of the pond it has a different name. The narrator (Eric Idle I believe) says, “And now for something completely different; the larch.”

The Larch Photo: Rebecca Cuningham

It isn’t funny the first time, or the second (unless you’re my dad or you’re watching it with him), but by the fifth and sixth time the sight gag appears, it’s. falling down hilarious. And then, something completely different repeats repeatedly.

I hope you’ll find new joy in the routines of life. As we say in our house, and now for something completely…

Have a great weekend! ¡Olé! –Rebecca

If you like trees as much as I do, check out Becky’s page for more photos.

#TreeSquare

Becky B’s Squares Logo Photo: Becky B and Friends

See Debbie and Friends’ great photos at Six Word Saturday

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Rebecca Cuningham

18 thoughts on “Now Something Completely Different: The Larch”

  3. Now I’m trying to remember ifI it was Eric Idle or Terry Jones narrating. Which probably means it was Michael Palin. My square has a very subtle reference to John Cleese in the days before Monty Python.

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