Usually prized for their large, showy flowers, the colorful growths on this Northern Catalpa (Catalpa speciosa) make it stand out even more than normal. This ornamental tree is guaranteed a steady stream of admirers as it is located just off a bike-trail in Hudson, WI. Thank you to Brian Meissner for this Tree-mendous Photo!!

Those little red horns growing out of the leaf aren't actually the last tentacles of a tiny octopus that was unwittingly engulfed by a sneaky tree. Instead those are galls. Often referred to as nail or bugle galls, the tree grows them when the leaves are stimulated by chemicals in the saliva of mites from the genus Eriophyes. After such growth, the mite has a cozy gall to feed and breed in throughout the summer. The Octopus Hypothesis is just as plausible though, right? The hosts for these manipulative, saliva-secreting critters tend to be trees in the Tilia genus, such as the specimen pictured here. Thank you to Elisabeth Landgren for this Tree-mendous Photo!!