Re: [gardeners] Sassafras
Allen and Judy Merten (gardeners@globalgarden.com)
Thu, 22 Oct 1998 03:08:35 -0500
Hi Linda,
File is pronounced "Fee-lay".
Allen
Bastrop Co.,Tx
Linda Baranowski-Smith wrote:
> George wrote:
>
> >I've been running around the woods of SE Texas and SW Louisiana all my
> >life and have never seen a sassafras tree with seeds. Doesn't mean there
> >aren't any, just I never saw any. I have a small, 6 foot, sassafras
> >growing behind the house and now have two or three 6 inch trees coming
> >up 20 to 30 feet away. Just assumed they came up from the roots. This is
> >interesting, let us know what you find out. Sassafras trees are a way of
> >life down here, that's where gumbo file comes from, ground up sassafras
> >leaves.
> >
>
> ...oh me oh my ohhh...
> Crawfish pie n' file gumbo...
> Son of a gun, gonna have big fun on the bayou..
> Jumblayah...
>
> Oops, can't help myself. Had to burst into song. :o Is it file or filet
> (fill-lay)? Heard it called "zab" also.
>
> Back to sassafras... Still don't know anything. Others have suggested the
> birds may eat all the seed before they mature. Male and female flowers are
> on separate trees. The fruit is a dark blue drupe, about 1/2 inch long,
> and on the end of a red, fleshy stalk. I look at our trees year round from
> the windows and I think I'd notice. Other folks around here have never
> seen the seed either. Maybe all the local trees are male.
>
> One of our trees is about 30 feet tall and yes, it puts out suckers away
> from the tree. I've let a few of them mature. My understanding is that
> the suckers have to be root pruned the first year in order to survive a
> transplanting the second year.
>
> I need seed though because I can't take a tree to Canada. I may have to
> wait until next year to track this interesting question before September
> rolls around. Will let y'all know if I find the answer. :)
>
> Linda in NW Ohio near Toledo/Lake Erie, USDA Zone 5
> llbs@mail.glasscity.net