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Loney old man...


Loney old man...
Photo Information
Copyright: Gerhard Theron (gerhardt) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1976 W: 259 N: 4103] (11585)
Genre: Plants
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2006-01-29
Categories: Trees
Camera: Canon EOS 20D, Canon EFS 18-55mm, Digital ISO 100, Hoya UV - 58mm
Exposure: f/14.0, 1/80 seconds
More Photo Info: [view]
Photo Version: Original Version
Date Submitted: 2006-02-01 8:35
Viewed: 2042
Points: 32
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
Oldwood
Leucosidea sericea

This is a small tree of great character which grows in the eastern parts of South Africa. It is a very versatile addition to the indigenous garden.

The generic name (Leucosidea) is derived from the Greek words for "white or grey appearance", while the species name (sericea) is the Latin for "silky" in reference to the silky hairs on the leaves of the tree.

The ouhout is often a straggly shrub or a dense, small, evergreen tree, which grows up to 7m tall to 5m wide. It is single or multi-stemmed and branches low down. The bark is rough, reddish brown in colour and flakes off to reveal a smooth light brown under-bark. The leaves are alternately arranged, compound and covered with silky, silver hairs. Each leaf possesses 3 to 4 pairs of leaflets. The veins on the leaves are deeply sunken on the upper surface and protrude on the lower surface. The leaves are a dark green colour above and a lighter green colour below. The margins of the leaflets are deeply serrated. When the leaves are crushed they have a strong herb-like smell. The flowers are greenish-yellow in colour, star-shaped, and grow in spikes at the ends of young shoots in spring (August to September). The fruits are nut-like and about 3 mm in diameter (December to January).

This tree is usually found growing in dense thickets at altitudes above 1000 metres. It can be found growing in open grassland, along river banks and on wooded, rocky ridges. It is usually found growing in damp conditions, on deep, sandy or clayey and often rocky soil. Leucosidea sericea occurs in the Eastern Cape, Lesotho, western KwaZulu-Natal, the eastern Free State, North West, Gauteng, Mpumalanga, and Limpopo provinces, Swaziland and Zimbabwe.

The flowers and young shoots of this plant are browsed by cattle and goats in spring. It forms dense thickets on overgrazed, eroded or otherwise disturbed areas and can, therefore, become a problem plant on farm lands. The ouhout produces nectar which is probably utilised by bees and other insects.

The wood makes good, durable fence posts in permanently wet soil even though it is soft. Apparently in mountainous areas where the ouhout occurs near streams it is an indication that they are suitable for being stocked with trout. Zulu people use a paste made from the crushed leaves of Leucosidea sericea for treating ophthalmia (an eye ailment). The tree is used by the local people as a charm to protect the inhabitants of homesteads. The wood of this tree burns slowly and produces a lot of smoke like old and decaying wood. This together with the appearance of the flaky bark has given rise to the tree's common name of "oldwood".

Hope you like it
Nico, petrudamsa, Fisher, dew77, eleana, coasties, sAner, PDP, hummingbird24, Signal-Womb, Luc, TBW has marked this note useful
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Discussions
ThreadThread Starter Messages Updated
To sAner: Thanx for the kind words...gerhardt 1 02-02 13:38
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Critiques [Translate]

I see this one like a great landscape, completed by the tree. I'm not sure what to look at first. Very useful note.

Regards, Petru

Hey there - very nicely done here, good saturation and composition, nice eye lead in. TFS

Hi Gerhard,

Firstly, you did well on the composition and showing the scene/landscape, it's beautiful.

Secondly, either the lens let you down, or something went wrong in post pro. There is noise just at the top edges of the hills and either the focus or sharpness is not normal. The only way I can communicate what it is, it's like a shot using my Fuji S5000. Sorry, I don't ever see the negative in your postings.
Knowing Canon's manufacturing flaws and I'm fed up with them, I'm going with the lens.

Mike

Hi Gerhard,
A great view with lovley colours.
Well composed and good POV.
Well done, my friend.

Congrats on your well deserved 10k.

  • Great 
  • chiliu Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1494 W: 0 N: 1175] (6494)
  • [2006-02-01 14:42]

Hi Gerhard,
Very beautiful landscape well captured,
excellent composition and very good exposure.
Thanks for sharing!

  • Great 
  • dew77 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 4774 W: 294 N: 4020] (13209)
  • [2006-02-01 15:17]

Hello Gerhard!
Wonderful landscape.Exposure is spot on.Colors,
POV,DOF,framing,your informative note and
composition are excellent.
TFS...:-)

  • Great 
  • odin Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 183 W: 1 N: 207] (1157)
  • [2006-02-01 16:24]

What a land Gerhard, It is very beautyfull. I hope to see it one time in my life. Well Done
Sébastien

  • Great 
  • eleana Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 207 W: 80 N: 75] (2233)
  • [2006-02-01 17:24]

Good calm composition, great place ( I suppose it looking better if to watch it by own eyes :). Amazing sky. Very well done,
best wishes and TFS,
Elena

Lovely landscape Gerhard. Nicely composed with good light and colour. Interesting note. Good work. Thanks.

  • Great 
  • sAner Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1490 W: 72 N: 1427] (4744)
  • [2006-02-02 10:04]
  • [+]

If your tree is the main subject then I would say your POV should have been a little bit lower. The little tree doesn't stand out from the mountains/hills like it is now. I also see distortion just above the mountains, but I am sure that is caused by compression below 8, right? I have experienced that myself aswell and I hate that. I really like the colors and the exposure is spot on. Well done & TFS!

Regards,
Pieter

Ps-I am recovering from a fever, so I hope I make any sense? ;)

  • Great 
  • PDP Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor [C: 2821 W: 344 N: 3779] (11769)
  • [2006-02-02 16:01]

Hello Gerhard, this is very nice. the composition is good and it's a very nice scene. I would be tempted to go a little higher with the tripod (or your legs) to bring the tree top down below the skyline. Lovley job, well done.

Hello Gerhard,

Sorry, no time for a decent comment, but definitely worth a ;-)

Nicely composed and great note!

TFS.

  • Great 
  • Toni Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 403 W: 2 N: 316] (2034)
  • [2006-02-06 17:57]

Hi Gerhard
More beautiful scenery. The light is lovely. Excellent DOV and varied sky. Great contrasts too.
Regards Toni

  • Great 
  • Nico Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 209 W: 1 N: 332] (1313)
  • [2006-02-10 3:46]

Fantastic colour and contrast, detail, Old Man. Real chocolate box pic, I think.

Hi Gerhard, nice scene with good composition and colour. The small shrub is a little lost in the BG although it still adds to the composition. Not sure what I would have done here. I may have tried a vertical shot closer to the shrub at a lower POV and left of frame, hard to say. Anyhow well done.

  • Great 
  • TBW Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 94 W: 28 N: 200] (846)
  • [2006-11-18 6:49]

Very interesting note, making it a very interesting picture! It is great to see the landscape in your area, being so different from the landscape where I live. It slooks really fascinating, and it looks like it is a nice place to walk, with the grassy hills and gentle slopes.
Thanks for sharing this picture!
Torbjørn

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