September 2025 Trees that Shaped the Seas, Art and Nature
Fall at the pond Friday September 7 I gave a Tree Mob "Trees that Shaped the Seas" among the oaks and pines at the Arboretum this afternoon, talking about the different species of trees that were used in wooden ships in colonial times. White oak was commonly used for hulls, as it is denser and stronger than most other locally available woods. The USS Constitution used even denser southern live oak for the frames of the hull and white oak for the planking. Eastern white pine was used for masts as it grew tall and straight. The tropical wood lignum vitae, the densest of all woods (so dense that it sinks in water), was used for block and tackle (pulley systems). A typical colonial navy warship (a "third-rater") required 2000 trees for its construction. The talk was videotaped; here's the link . The audio is a little fuzzy at the beginning, but then gets clearer as the talk goes along. I didn't think that the Arb had any live oak, as it is a southern tree,...