Ghost ranches, buried old cars, coyote packs, a former free range Ankole Watusi bull, The Holler is definitely an odd place, which is why we fit in so well!
Take this thorny tree for example. It is a Silk Floss tree and is about 50 feet tall.
This time of year it is covered in plate sized cotton poofs.
The poofs develop from large seed pods.
In the fall, the tree drops its leaves and devotes all its energy to producing masses of beautiful blooms.
The Holler abuts a large nature preserve and is built on very old orchards. Back in the day, orchard workers lived on site and indulged in their love of exotic plants and trees, many of which are still thriving and producing today.
I often wish I could tell them how much we appreciate living with the beautiful results of their talent and effort.
Cheers to you from the very odd Holler~
cindyknoke.com 
Simply extraordinary! Thanks for showing, Cindy.
Take care,
Pit
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Fabulous post, Cindy! That tree is fantastic!
Not the Art Gown I’m working on now, but the one after is inspired by the cottonwood tree. Seems to be a similarity.
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I can’t wait to see both!! დ
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Wow I’ve never seen a tree like this, great photos too Cindy xx
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Thank you Charlotte. I think William said it best, ‘There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy’ Stay safe & well my friend დ
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Your captures are hauntingly beautiful, there is definitely treasures in the Holler…thank you for sharing them!
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Thank you more for such a kind and thoughtful comment and cheers to you! დ
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Really neat. Thanks for teaching me something new.
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Thank you much more for appreciating the opportunity Lori & cheers to you დ
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I’ve never seen anything like those white poufy things, Cindy — thanks for educating me today!
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Somebody called it a Plate Sized Poof Tree! I think this should definitely become its official name! 😉
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The lone bull? He has enoughgrass to eat, guess so it’s been there a long time. Love seeing the silf floss, it look like cotton which we get plenty of in Texas.
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Oh yes, there is enough grass here to feed the herd and the cotton poof tree does look just like cotton! Happy to hear Texas is warming up and hope you are doing well დ
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Cool plate-sized poof tree.
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Laughing…..I like your name!!! დ
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Love that Silk Floss tree
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So glad you do. It is an awesome presence დ
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You live in a magic kingdom, Cindy. I’ve never seen a tree like that, but I hope to one day. Your photos are stunning.
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Awww, I love my kind blogging friends like you!! Thank you and be safe დდ
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Amazing – reminds me of cotton fields in the South – only very high in the air!! Thanks, Cindy, as always, for the wonderful images and stories.
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Somebody called it, “High Cotton,” which I think is a very apt name დ
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I love that.
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დ
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Hi Cuz
What oddball stuff you have there in the Holler !!! xo
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We fit in like a glove!!! 😉 Stay safe and well cuz დ
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‘High cotton!’
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That would be a good, concise name for the tree! დ
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Was für eine seltsame Frucht, die so wundervolle Blüten macht und dann diese riesigen Baumwolle Knäuel macht! Liebe Freundin Cindy, vielen herzlichen Dank für den schönen Bericht.
Ernst
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Ja, es ist ein sehr seltsamer Baum. Es gilt als einer der schönsten Bäume der Welt, wenn es blüht. Es ist mit großen schönen Blüten bedeckt! Ich hoffe du bleibst sicher und gut mein Freund. დ
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Ahh..I didn’t know cotton candy floss grew on trees. ٩(๑∂▿∂๑)۶♡
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You have to climb 60 feet over all those thorns to get it though!!! 😉 დ
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Oh my…😱😱🤗🌈❤️
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დდ
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Who knew there were such beauties in The Holler!
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The Holler is full of all sorts of surprises! დ
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🙂
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Anch’io come altri commentatori ho pensato al cotone, solo che quest’ultimo si sviluppa basso,
Gan belle immagini, complimenti.
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No Gan ma Gran 😉
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😉
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Grazie mille. Il cotone cresce a 60 piedi da terra! დ
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What an amazing tree! I have never heard of it, and it’s hard to believe those cotton poofs really grow on it. I looked up the Ankole Watusi bull, and I thought I had seen big Long Horns when we lived in Texas, but nothing like those bulls. How in the world do they hold their heads up? You do indeed have some oddities in the Holler!
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We are well oddities in a very odd place!! 😉 😉 დ
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Wow, those are amazing! The puffs look hand-crafted. Are they soft like cotton?
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They are cotton like, but sort of wispy and they have seeds დ
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Wow! Those fluffy balls are amazing. I’ve photographed this tree in the Royal Botanic Gardens in Melbourne, but I’ve never walked past it when it has the seed pods or balls of fluff on it. I seem to remember the tree was about 20-25 foot high and when in bloom, a sight to behold.
It had (literally) hundreds of flowers.
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Yes, they bloom in the fall here and are often considered one of the world’s most beautiful trees, for good reason! დ
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Beautiful 💕Thank you Cindy 😎
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You are most welcome Val & cheers my friend დ
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Wild parrots love those things.
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I would love to see this!!! დ
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Thanks for this great post 🙂
I will be on the lookout for this Silk Floss tree for eternity! Beautiful
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You are most welcome! Let me know when you two finally meet დ
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I have never seen anything like those cotton balls and I watch a Holler mountain man in the TV show, Mountain Men.
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Pleased to have been able to make the introduction & cheers to you Jacqui დ
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Do birds use the cotton wool for their nests?
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I don’t know. But it is such an original and logical question, that I would guess they do! დ
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Wow that tree is so kewl! Looks like giant cotton balls
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Yes, and they are growing out of human reach! დ
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Wow amazing pictures, so beautiful, great capture Cindy! 🙂
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Happy you enjoyed & thank you! დ
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Love those trees – so cool anytime of year! I saw the first one at Disney’s Epcot. Neat.
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How wonderful! I have never been there დ
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What a wonderful tree! Must be really neat to live by protected land!
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It is very wild, no people, just wild life, mostly coyote packs and rattlesnakes!!! დ
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Oh my! We have coyotes around here, and they don’t bother me much. (But we keep cats indoors.) However, about those snakes…. 😉
Julie
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Snakes want to avoid you, so the trick is to not step on them! დ
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What a cool tree! I’ve never seen this before.
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It is a definite Dr. Seuss tree!! 😉
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Yes!
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დ
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I’ve never seen a pouf/poof like this. I would love the Holler, because after all, we’re all part of a Holler, every odd and original part of us. xo
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We are indeed, just like this pouf that goes poof in the breeze!! Thank you and cheers to you დ
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Beautiful pictures. Treat to eyes and nice capture.
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Honored by your kindness. Thank you Sowjanya & be well დ
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Definitely extraordinary! I am always getting surprised by your postings. 😉 Thank you, Cindy!
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So kind of you and so appreciated. Thank you! You make me happy I posted დ
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You did before, Cindy! Its always a great pleasure! Michael
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Wow. So gorgeous. Thanks for sharing. It reminds me of the pine cones on Mt Diablo, big as my head. The only place in the country with such outsized pine cones. Rare and beautiful things are everywhere.
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Rare and beautiful things are everywhere, just waiting for someone to find them! Be well my friend დ
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And you, too. I imagine the Holler is at its best in the spring.
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Yes. It is just starting, and for the first time, I am home, from start to finish. Love to you Brenda დ
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Some blessings from the quarantine. 🙂
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We went out to dinner tonight. First time in over a year! There were women chatting in the bathroom who weren’t wearing masks and wouldn’t leave. Oh well…… baby steps. დ
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I am sad that they were not taking care of themselves and you. We still need to be taking care of each other. I haven’t eaten out in SO LONG! I have tried new recipes, though. Almost the same thing, but not quite. 🙂
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Yes. Cooking creatively daily for a year has actually been a lot of fun.
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I’m so grateful that the food distribution network didn’t fail us.
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True. It was quite dicey for the first few months.
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Just love seeing your Holler and all it’s amazing species.
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Awwww, you are so kind and most appreciated! დდ
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So beautiful!!!!
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Awww, much appreciated & thanks so much! დ
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The silk floss looks so amazing!!
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Everything about it is interesting, including it’s trunk which is green and carries out photosynthesis for the tree when the leaves have fallen. დ
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Amazing. You know the details.
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You are very welcome დ
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This looks like “kapok”. Lemme see the English name. Yeah. kapok. In Africa we also called it “fromager”. In South America it’s “ceiba”. Do you get those all the way “up north”? (of here?)
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It is a Kapok. Native to Brazil and Argentina. They are not native here, but thrive beautifully დ
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I’ve seen huge ones in Africa. And on the Amazon. Giants of trees. Second probably only to the sequoias… Glad they thrive in your neck of the woods.
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I am too. I love them დ
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What an amazing place!
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Thank you Vinny. It is definitely different! დ
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sommerliche Grüße kommen von mir zu dir, Klaus
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Sommergrüße mein Freund und danke, dass Sie so nachdenklich und rücksichtsvoll sind. Bleib sicher und gesund დდ
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Very nice captures, Cindy ~ have a great weekend 😊 💛
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Thank you Phil & cheers to you my friend დ
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Cheers Cindy 😊
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დ
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