All the Dirt on Gardening

Judy Holly Melia azedarach is another one of those good ideas that went astray along the way. Chinaberry and four other species are from Asia and north Australia. They are all from the Mahogany plant family of trees and shrubs.   In her Examiner dot com article, Judy Holly said, "Chinaberry trees grow in alkaline soils and survive dry and hot climates so they have been a popular tree in the southwest for many years and are suitable for Las Vegas conditions."   And, they are a pretty shaped tree with mildly poisonous fruits. (Who eats these things besides songbirds?) Not harmful to birds who eat the berries until they fall down drunk. In CA it's a hilarious sight for commuters to see the birds drunk along the waysides.   The fruits have also been a walking hazard, like pepper trees and other trees that drop hard seed pods. TX Invasives  The same poison is in the leaves and an extract has been used as an insecticide.   Melia azedarach trees are weak-l...