Completely Arbortrary

Latest Episodes:

SEEDPOD: Phyllis Reynolds, Portland Tree Legend Feb 05, 2024

Show notes

Meet Phyllis Reynolds: original Portland Heritage Tree committee member, author of Trees of Greater Portland, and overall hardcore tree advocate. We sat down with Phyllis in the living room of her beautiful NW Portland home on the outskirts of Hoyt Arboretum, where she is a local legend and her name is spoken with mirthful reverence.

To hear the full interview and see the full uncut video, support Completely Arbortrary Treemium at arbortrarypod.supercast.com

To get a copy of Phyllis's book, check your local independent bookstore.

Completely Arbortrary is produced and hosted by Casey Clapp and Alex Crowson

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Cover art by Jillian Barthold

Seedpod theme song by The Mini-Vandals

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What is Arboriculture? (European Horsechestnut) Feb 01, 2024

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Fancy a game of conkers? No? Well how about a conversation about the ins and outs of arboriculture, and how it relates to the European horsechestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum)? Hear Casey’s first-hand experience regarding how to become an arborist, and what an arborist actually is!

Completely Arbortrary is produced and hosted by Casey Clapp and Alex Crowson

Support the pod and become a Treemium Member

Follow along on Instagram

Find Arbortrary merch on our store

Find additional reading on our website

Cover art by Jillian Barthold

Music by Aves and The Mini-Vandals

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Parasite (This Week's Tree) Jan 25, 2024

Show notes

A tree with no (officiall common) name, the Falcatifolium taxoides is a derivative tree from the island of New Caledonia. It’s yew-ish, it’s sickle-like, and it’s a PODOCARP. Plus, it has a curious leech of a friend who depends on it for everything—the world’s only parasitic gymnosperm.

Completely Arbortrary is produced and hosted by Casey Clapp and Alex Crowson

Support the pod and become a Treemium Member

Follow along on Instagram

Find Arbortrary merch on our store

Find additional reading on our website

Cover art by Jillian Barthold

Music by Aves and The Mini-Vandals

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Birds & The Trees (Rimu) Jan 18, 2024

Show notes

It’s time for that special talk… about the rimu (Dacrydium cupressinum) and its special friend and lover the Kākāpō. This bird bases its entire existence around this tree, and the feelings just may be mutual.

Completely Arbortrary is produced and hosted by Casey Clapp and Alex Crowson

Support the pod and become a Treemium Member

Follow along on Instagram

Find Arbortrary merch on our store

Find additional reading on our website

Cover art by Jillian Barthold

Music by Aves and The Mini-Vandals

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Podocarps (Totara) Jan 11, 2024

Show notes

PODOCARPS! Never have we ever discussed one of its ilk, much to the chagrin of thousands, we’re sure. And to start our mini-series of New Zealand trees, today we present the Totara (Podocarpus totara). With its curious leaf-like-needle-like-leaves, this conifer is so good at pretending to be a broadleaf tree, it’s practically become one.

Completely Arbortrary is produced and hosted by Casey Clapp and Alex Crowson

Support the pod and become a Treemium Member

Follow along on Instagram

Find Arbortrary merch on our store

Find additional reading on our website

Cover art by Jillian Barthold

Music by Aves and The Mini-Vandals

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Butterfly Talk! (Oyamel) Jan 04, 2024

Show notes

Have you ever seen a column of gold (orange)? It may just be an oyamel (Abies religiosa), the sacred fir. Every year countless Monarch butterflies pilgrimage to the mountains of Mexico to spend their winter months clinging to these trees, but why? (Spoiler: we don't know.)

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Princess Mononoke (Hinoki) Dec 28, 2023

Show notes

Can we interest you in a forest bath? On the series finale of Treeyazaki, we discuss Princess Mononoke and the hinoki cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa). A tree ripe with VOCs (volatile organic compounds) and rich tradition such as forest bathing, this tree is a quintisential Japanese conifer.

Completely Arbortrary is produced and hosted by Casey Clapp and Alex Crowson

Support the pod and become a Treemium Member

Follow along on Instagram

Find Arbortrary merch on our store

Find additional reading on our website

Cover art by Jillian Barthold

Music by Aves and The Mini-Vandals

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (Japanese Fir) Dec 21, 2023

Show notes

What does a nuclear disaster do to trees? Find out on this episode of Treeyazaki, where we discuss the Miyazaki film Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind and the Japanese fir. Toxic jungles, giant bugs, and feudal politics. This movie was made for us.

Completely Arbortrary is produced and hosted by Casey Clapp and Alex Crowson

Support the pod and become a Treemium Member

Follow along on Instagram

Find Arbortrary merch on our store

Find additional reading on our website

Cover art by Jillian Barthold

Music by Aves and The Mini-Vandals

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

My Neighbor Totoro (Camphor) Dec 14, 2023

Show notes

Who is Totoro? They’re a spirit, a kami, of a massive camphor tree. In this episode of Treeyazaki, we talk legendary animated film My Neighbor Totoro and one of its central characters, the camphor (Cinnamomum camphora). We also talk about animism and its role in every culture around the entire world.

Support the pod and become a Treemium Member

Follow along on Instagram

Find Arbortrary merch on our store

Find additional reading on our website

Cover art by Jillian Barthold

Music by Aves and The Mini-Vandals

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Spirited Away (Sakaki) Dec 07, 2023

Show notes

Welcome to Completely Arbortrary’s Treeyazaki, a month-long exploration of the trees of Studio Ghibli and films of Hayao Miyazaki! To start our journey, we visit a bathhouse for spirits in Spirited Away. This is a story about a young girl who finds herself trapped in the spirit world, and must escape with the help of a river spirit. This episode we’re talking Shinto, the indigenous religion of Japan, and the importance of the Sakaki (Cleyera japonica).

Completely Arbortrary is produced and hosted by Casey Clapp and Alex Crowson

Support the pod and become a Treemium Member

Follow along on Instagram

Find Arbortrary merch on our store

Find additional reading on our website

Cover art by Jillian Barthold

Music by Aves and The Mini-Vandals

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.