A tree-aholic’s confession

Re “A Majesty for All Seasons” [Nov. 25]: Thanks for what was for me (a former SoCal tree-aholic now living on the treeless plains of Montana) a nostalgic look back. When we first arrived in Southern California from Maryland, I made the mistake of trying to re-create an East Coast landscape, using deciduous trees, but finally came to my senses for subsequent homes.

A neighbor put up a “hedge” of fast-growing Leyland cypress close to our mutual property line. It was a glorious privacy wall until it had to be taken out due to its inappropriate size.

Ann Louise Diamond

Havre, Mont.

*

SOME 20 years ago, I bought 5-gallon potted coast redwoods for inside my home during the holidays. In their youth, they have a spirited Christmas tree shape. Afterward, they were planted in my yard. I love them! If someone likes trees, size may not be a limiting factor.

In my area of La Crescenta, the Santa Ana winds are fierce, but I don’t recall ever seeing one lying across a road. While redwoods love water, I have seen them in hostile territory, like the San Joaquin Valley. Along county roads are 80-year-old farmhouses with healthy-looking redwoods.

John Lajeuness

La Crescenta