There's something else that begins to happen to the tree in the yellowbelly phase. Stick your nose into a crevice of the bark and take a big sniff. It may smell like butterscotch or vanilla. The next person who smells it may insist it's more like cinnamon, or even coconut.
— From Ponderosa Pines: Rugged Trees With A Sweet Smell at NPR.
I wonder if the smell of this tree attracts bees and the like more often? Either way, I’d love one for my yard, though it wouldn’t love living here. Ah well. Michigan pines smell great in their own way, even if the smell will never be mistaken for baking cookies.
I have been in those forests many times…wish I had known to smell the bark!
Ponderosas predominate in Central and Eastern Washington, where I am from. For the most part, it’s a piney smelling tree, but like all woods, there is an underlying note of something creamier. It’s part of the reason I love the hot, dry forests surrounding my hometown.
If I’m not mistaken, the Ponderosa is also the tree that has the tight pinecone that doesn’t open unless a fire sweeps through.
I think that’s right…
You know, I wish I had known this during my visits to Northern Arizona & New Mexico as well… I don’t think I even paid much attention to the trees, honestly. Interesting piece; thanks for posting!
It smells good in that area though! I love that smell, even if I didn’t necessarily know all of the components.
I like to smell everything, and I love the wet smells of bark in my backyard… sometimes they have an anise-tinge to them that makes it almost edible.
Yum.
Ah, so now I can put a name – Ponderosa Pine – to the “Butterscotch Tree”, which I first encountered on a “getting to know you” hike with my future husband. (I call him “Nature Boy”, since he’s so gung-ho about anything outdoorsy.) We passed close by one of these trees, and I exclaimed, “Something smells like butterscotch!” We both went in to sniff to the bark, and sure enough, it was sweet, maple-y goodness.
“Lick it!” Nature Boy commanded. And since I accepted his authority as Nature Boy, I obediently did so. (I thought he was revealing some ancient, tree-candy secret.) And guess what! Nature Boy was f*#king with me. He still laughs at the memory of me licking a tree.
LOL…trying to imagine ever being willing to lick a tree! Good for you.
I grew up in Colorado, and I still consider it my home, though I currently live in the UK. I’ve loved Ponderosa Pines since I was a kid, and my brother and I called them “vanilla trees” as children. When we went hiking, we would run from tree to tree, trying to decide which smelled best.
To this day, I’m convinced that if I ever find a fragrance that comes near the smell of an ancient Ponderosa Pine, that would be the “perfect vanilla” I’ve always wanted.
I wonder if the smell could be taken from the tree somehow … but actually I hope it can’t – I think if it could, the Ponderosas might travel a similar trail to that of Mysore Sandalwood.
Oh, now I’m really dying to smell one! Sounds like somebody needs to use headspace technology on a ponderosa pine.