[NOTE: we just chalked a tour, of Pacific Heights today - that tour will be up on the site in a couple of days. Click here for our older tours of the Bayview, Bernal Heights, Castro, Cow Hollow, Dogpatch, Glen Park, Inner Sunset, Lower Haight, Mission (central Mission), Mission (Inner Mission), Mission (Transmission), Mission Bay, Noe Valley (north), Noe Valley (south), NOPA, Potrero Hill, Richmond, Russian Hill, Transmission, Westwood Park and West Portal tours.]

We return to Noe Valley for another tour exploring the arboreal richness of this neighborhood - but this time, the northern half of the neighborhood. For this tour, we start out at The Animal Company, in its new headquarters at 24th and Castro streets, and remain north of 24th Street, between Douglass and Vicksburg streets.

Today’s walk begins with an exceptional specimen on Castro Street, just north of 24th Street. The walk continues uphill, heads west on Elizabeth Street to Douglass Street, then north on Douglass to 23rd Street, and east on 23rd all the way to Vicksburg Street. At Vicksburg, the walk heads south to 24th Street, and then returns to its start at 24th and Castro, with a quick jog north on Noe for a special tree. This walk is roughly two miles long

Numbered trees are labeled with common and scientific names and country of origin, all written in white chalk on the sidewalk; accompanying numbers, in blue, run from 1 to 59. White arrows on the pavement provide directions whenever a turn is needed.

Sweetshade tree (Hymenosporum flavum) - biggest one in San Francisco! — Sweetshade tree (*Hymenosporum* *flavum*) - biggest one in San Francisco!

Our trio of tree geeks responsible for this tour is the same: Jason Dewees (author of Designing with Palms), Richard Turner (retired editor of Pacific Horticulture), and I’m Mike Sullivan, author of Trees of San Francisco.

Castro Street, 24th to Elizabeth, west side

1. 1230 Castro Sweetshade tree (Hymenosporum flavum), Eastern Australia. This is a “City Champion” - the biggest of its species in San Francisco!

Turn left on Elizabeth Street. Elizabeth Street, Castro to Diamond, south side

2. 605 Elizabeth Washington thorn (Crataegus phaenopyrum) Eastern USA

berries of Washington thorn (Crataegus phaenopyrum) — berries of Washington thorn (*Crataegus phaenopyrum*)

3. 639 Elizabeth Australian willow (Geijera parviflora), Eastern & southeast Australia

4. 662 Elizabeth Chinese elm (Ulmus parvifolia), East Asia (2 trees across the street)

5. 665 Elizabeth Glossy privet (Ligustrum lucidum), Southern China

6. 665 Elizabeth New Zealand Christmas tree, pōhutukawa in Māori (Metrosideros excelsa), New Zealand (a row of 11 tightly pruned trees alongside St Philip Catholic Church)

Elizabeth Street, Diamond to Douglass, south side

7. 700 Diamond Peruvian pepper tree (Schinus molle), Peru, Chile (the tree is on Elizabeth Street)

8. 709 Elizabeth Kwanzan flowering cherry (Prunus serrulata ‘Kwanzan’), East Asia

9. 719 Elizabeth Chinese windmill palm (Trachycarpus fortunei), China (the furry trunks of this very nice specimen are characteristic of this palm)

10. 761 Elizabeth Japanese maple (Acer palmatum), Japan, China, Korea

11. 795 Elizabeth Myoporum or ngaio in Māori (Myoporum laetum), New Zealand (this species is dying all over San Francisco, due to an insect pest called thrips)

Noe Valley Courts

12. southwest corner of Douglass and Elizabeth Silk oak (Grevillea robusta), Eastern Australia (a row of 5 trees along the edge of the park)

Turn right on Douglass. Douglass Street, Elizabeth to 23rd, west side

13. 716 Douglass Ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba), China

14. 708 Douglass White champaca (Magnolia x alba), a hybrid of southeast Asian species (watch for the fragrant white flowers tucked within the foliage)

15. 706 Douglas Jacaranda (Jacaranda mimosifolia), Argentina, Bolivia

Turn right on 23rd. 23rd Street, Douglass to Eureka, north side

16. 697 Douglass Shoestring acacia (Acacia stenophylla), Australia (4 trees on 23rd). This is a very rare tree for San Francisco’s streets, although it is the tree planted in the median of Guerrero from 16th to 24th Streets.

17. 697 Douglass Tahitian lime (Citrus X latifolia), horticultural form of southeast Asian species (tree is in rear yard on 23rd; also a Mandarin orange (Citrus x tangerina; tree is to the right of the lime)

18. 4250 - 23rd Lemonwood, or tarata in Māori (Pittosporum eugenioides), New Zealand

19. 4250 - 23rd Brazilian pepper tree (Schinus terebinthifolius), Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay

23rd Street, Eureka to Diamond, north side

20. 4232 - 23rd Evergreen pear (Pyrus kawakamii), Taiwan

21. 4228 - 23rd Moonlight grevillea (Grevillea ‘Moonlight’), hybrid of Australian species

22. 4206 - 23rd Giant yucca (Yucca gigantea), Mexico & Central America

23rd Street, Diamond to Castro, north side, then south side

23. 4172 - 23rd Mexican fan palm (Washingtonia robusta), Baja California (a trio!)

**Cross 23rd carefully; there is a surprising amount of traffic on this street**

24. 4179 - 23rd Kentia palm (Howea forsteriana), Lord Howe Island, Australia (tree is growing in a large box on the walkway below the sidewalk)

25. 4175 - 23rd Bronze loquat (Rhaphiolepis deflexa, syn. Eriobotrya deflexa), Southern China and Vietnam

26. 4173 - 23rd Purple-leaf plum (Prunus cerasifera), Eurasia (2 trees; formerly SF’s most planted street tree)

27. 4148 - 23rd Queen palm (Syagrus romanzoffiana), Southern Brazil ( 7 trees across the street, close to the house)

28. 4149 - 23rd Brisbane box (Lophostemon confertus), Eastern Australia

close-up of a leaf - Silk oak (Grevillea robusta) — close-up of a leaf - Silk oak (*Grevillea robusta*)

29. 4143 - 23rd Sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua), Eastern USA to Mexico & Central America

30. 4131 - 23rd Peruvian pepper tree (Schinus molle), Peru, Chile

31. 4125 - 23rd Forest Pansy eastern redbud (Cercis canadensis ‘Forest Pansy’), Eastern USA (come back in spring for its bright magenta flowers)

32. 4121 - 23rd Silk oak (Grevillea robusta), Eastern Australia (not remotely related to oaks)

33. 4107 - 23rd Bailey’s acacia (Acacia baileyana), Eastern Australia

23rd Street, Castro to Noe, north side

Hercules tree aloe (Aloidendron ‘Hercules’) — Hercules tree aloe (*Aloidendron* ‘Hercules’)

34. 4082 - 23rd Indian laurel fig (Ficus microcarpa), South & southeast Asia to Australia (an uncommon form of this species; note the pinkish fruits on the sunny side of the tree)

35. 4074 - 23rd London plane tree (Platanus x acerifolia), hybrid of Eastern USA species and European species

36. 4062 - 23rd Purple potato bush (Lycianthes rantonnetii), Paraguay (typically a large shrub, this has been trained into a tree-like form; flowers all year)

37. 4052 - 23rd Hercules tree aloe (Aloidendron ‘Hercules’), hybrid of two South African species; the flowering shrub with it is an island mallow, Malva assurgentiflora; note the well-tended succulent garden against the house)

38. 4042 - 23rd Marina strawberry tree (Arbutus ‘Marina’), hybrid of Mediterranean species (first introduced in San Francisco - the interesting San Francisco story can be found here)

[39 not used]

40. 4038 - 23rd Marri (Corymbia calophylla), W Australia (looks like a white-flowered Corymbia ficifolia, #46, but this is a distinct species with white flowers and differently shaped fruits

41. 4024 - 23rd Lemon bottlebrush (Callistemon citrinus), Eastern Australia (the crushed leaves smell of lemon)

42. 998 Noe Queen palm (Syagrus romanzoffiana), Southern Brazil (tree is on Noe, just north of 23rd; one of SF’s best specimens)

23rd Street, Noe to Sanchez, north side

43. 3998 - 23rd Chinese elm (Ulmus parvifolia), East Asia (6 trees create a tunnel-like effect here)

44. 3984 - 23rd Giant bird-of-paradise (Strelitzia nicolai), South Africa (likely SF’s biggest)

**Cross 23rd carefully, to the south side of the street**

45. 3947 - 23rd Peppermint willow (Agonis flexuosa), southwest Australia

46. 3945 - 23rd Red-flowering gum (Corymbia ficifolia), southwest Australia

We loved this garage door on 23rd Street!

47. 3915 - 23rd Blackwood acacia (Acacia melanoxylon), southeast Australia

23rd Street, Sanchez to Vicksburg, south side

48. 3883 - 23rd Red ironbark (Eucalyptus sideroxylon), Eastern & southeast Australia

49. 3879 - 23rd African fern pine (Afrocarpus gracilior), East & South Africa

Turn right at Vicksburg. Vicksburg Street, 23rd to 24th, west side

50. 102 Vicksburg Water gum (Tristaniopsis laurina), Eastern Australia (this tree grows in streamside locations in the wild; hence, the common name; SF’s most commonly planted street tree)

51. 138 Vicksburg Snow-in-summer tree or flax-leaf paperbark (Melaleuca linariifolia), Eastern Australia (feel the spongy bark)

52. 138 Vicksburg Mimosa (Albizia julibrissin), Iran

Cross 24th Street, and turn right on 24th. 24th Street, Vicksburg to Sanchez, south side

Glossy privet (Ligustrum lucidum) - the first tree ever planted by Friends of the Urban Forest in April 1981! — Glossy privet (*Ligustrum lucidum*) - the first tree ever planted by Friends of the Urban Forest in April 1981!

53. NW corner of Noe Valley Town Square Coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia), a California and even a San Francisco native!

54. 3885 - 24th Little Gem magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora ‘Little Gem’), southeast USA

24th Street, Sanchez to Noe, south side

55. 3913 - 24th Glossy privet (Ligustrum lucidum), Southern China (this is the very first tree planted by Friends of the Urban Forest, in April 1981; note the new location here of Ristorante Bacco, the editor’s favorite Italian restaurant)

56. 3917 - 24th Weeping bottlebrush (Callistemon viminalis), Eastern Australia

57. 3953 - 24th Red maple (Acer rubrum), Florida to Canada to Texas

close-up of leaf: Red maple (Acer rubrum) — close-up of leaf: Red maple (*Acer rubrum*)

Jog up Noe to #1082, then backtrack. Noe Street, just north of 24th, west side

58. 1082 Noe Southern magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora), southeast USA (this specimen was planted on April 22, 2000, in celebration of Earth Day)

24th Street, Noe to Castro, south side

59. 4021 Noe Callery pear (Pyrus calleryana), China & Vietnam (this species seldom does well in SF)

This tree walk ends at Castro and 24th streets, near its beginning at 1230 Castro, just north of 24th.

Our regular commercial: This walking tour was organized by Mike Sullivan, author of The Trees of San Francisco and webmaster of www.sftrees.com; Jason Dewees, horticulturist at Flora Grubb Gardens and author of Designing with Palms; and Richard Turner, retired editor of Pacific Horticulture magazine . You can follow Mike and Jason on their tree-themed Instagram pages at @sftreeguy and @loulufan. Richard edited another great book on San Francisco trees: Elizabeth McClintock’s Trees of Golden Gate Park. If you’re a tree enthusiast, buy all three books!