Quote:
Originally Posted by Metro-One
Yep, Ketchup red in BC interior too. They are nice because the coat many of the cliffs / steep hillsides. Looks amazing.
Okay, need some help. I have seen these trees in the warmer areas of Southern BC ever since I was a child, but have never been able to find them on any tree lists for BC. They seem large enough to not be considered a shrub.
They are most common on sandy sites in the Southern Interior Valleys (often close to rivers, but not always, sometimes in more urban areas, but not in a "planned" planted way), but I have also found groves on the BC Coast, particularly in the Fraser Valley.
The Fraser Canyon and Thompson Canyon seem to be a hot spot for them.
Here are some pics I took of a grove growing on a sandy beach / hillside at Bromley Rock Provincial Park located between Hedley and Princeton.
The bark and leaves are leaning me towards some type of willow or poplar??
Bromley Rock Shade Trees by Ian, on Flickr
Bromley Rock Beach by Ian, on Flickr
Bromley Rock Provincial Park by Ian, on Flickr
Bromley Rock Foliage by Ian, on Flickr
Bromley Rock Picnic by Ian, on Flickr
Any ideas??
Seems strange to me to never be listed in any tree book given their size and prominence at BC campsites!
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I was in BC for a couple of weeks during the Summer and saw those trees!! Saw them in the Fraser Canyon. Unfortunately it was when we were driving so we saw them very quickly. My wife was finally able to get a photo of a small one along Highway 8 next to the Nicola River. She used her cell phone so it wasn't the greatest photo but helped somewhat in identification.
I'm quite sure that the tree is the SITKA WILLOW.
The leaves definitely fit the description I've read and I have a number of tree books. The leaves can vary a fair amount like many willows (can be a bit pointy or more rounded) but I definitely know that those trees aren't Pacific Willows. The Sitka Willow is often a bush but can grow as a tree up to about 30 feet tall in select sites which is usually along rivers or lakes in low elevations and exposed to sunlight.
For awhile, I thought that those trees could be some sort of hybrid but I found a website that listed trees growing in the Fraser Canyon and then realized that they must be Sitka Willows as my books suggested by their appearance.