Little tree

Conchiolin · Post by **Conchiolin** » Thu May 31, 2007 8:40 pm

Hi i encountered this tree I'm sure it's not the indigenous Balluta. All of its leaves have this particular pattern and the foliage is a lot dense and the leaves have a very waxy texture they really seem to be made of plastic.

Hope it's something exciting

Any ideas?

RB · Post by RB » Fri Jun 01, 2007 12:27 pm

"I'm sure it's not the indigenous Balluta"

It is.

There is another form with rather different looking leaves, looking almost olive-like.

I'm not sure if both leaf forms are found on the same tree, or maybe at different ages.

I have two and they have leaves just like the ones in your pic. At Buskett there are also some with the different leaf type.

RB

Conchiolin · Post by **Conchiolin** » Fri Jun 01, 2007 9:13 pm

Hey now that is interesting.
2 forms of the same tree.

This tree looks much smaller. I found a very old balluta tree and i observed white round-shaped structures attached to the stalks of the branches. The moment i pressed one it exploded and i got showered with a red substance. You think that's a parasite and perhaps the red substance is blood? I don't think it's the fruit.

Tomorrow i will post a pic about it cause right now i'm sleepy.

Thanks very much Mr.RB.

Conchiolin · Post by **Conchiolin** » Sat Jun 02, 2007 7:02 am

Here are the round structures i was talking about. They are covered in white powder. When this is removed they have a shiny tough outer layer.

Are these parasites? I've seen similar parasites take the fig tree for example it has those parasites which attach themselves to the tree. They look exactly like limpets except they are smaller. And when squeezed they also yield the bloody substance.

Conchiolin · Post by **Conchiolin** » Sun Jun 03, 2007 10:52 am

Hey according to a guy it turns out that it's a parasite. He's no expert but he has a lot of experience and i think he's right. It is a parasite. Hope it does not wipe out all the Balluta trees in this country. I'm saying this because i'm seeing the catastrophe what the Lepidosaphes coc chyformis (il-miskta imhara) is doing to the fig trees. The leaves blacken and the tree becomes ugly with those cone-shaped parasites everywhere. Will post a pic someday.

RB · Post by RB » Sun Jun 03, 2007 12:29 pm

That's very interesting info about the Fig trees. Last summer I saw several trees with sooty blackened leaves.

As it happens I have 2 Pistacia lentiscus, and one of them has what looks to be scale insects, but they are larger and black. Last week I used some Malathion, we'll see how it goes.

RB