Monday, Jul. 06, 2009

Answer man: A tree grows, and it sure is a pain

Q. I suddenly have this tree in my yard with huge leaves that's growing like a weed. I'm in my 90s, but I've never seen anything like it. Can you tell me what kind of tree it is?

-- Homer Baker, of Swansea

A. Your yard has given root to a real prince of a tree. Or, to be more precise, a princess tree -- also called the Royal Paulownia, empress tree or foxglove tree.

Known in biological circles as Paulownia tomentosa, it's an Asian native that derives its name from Anna Pavlovna, daughter of Czar Paul I of Russia, who eventually married Prince William of Orange of the Netherlands. In the Netherlands she is better known as Anna Paulowna.

In some respects, it is a tree fit for a king, says Chip Tynan, who manages the horticulture answer service at the Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis.

"People enjoy their showy, purple flowers and interesting buds," Tynan told me. "Young trees often produce huge leaves, especially if they sprout and grow in shade. Its wood is prized by woodworkers in Japan for the ease with which it can be carved, much like basswood is by Ozark carvers."

An old Eastern custom had parents planting an empress tree when a baby girl was born. When the young woman was ready for marriage, the tree already was mature enough to be cut down and carved into objects for her dowry. The wood is also popular in Asia musical instruments, including the koto, the national instrument of Japan.

But in other ways, the plant can be a royal pain.

"Paulownia grows very fast and tends to be weak-wooded, so it is subject to storm damage," Tynan said. "It also produces copious seeds in years when cold weather doesn't kill their buds, and it can be very weedy. In many Eastern states it has been officially designated an exotic invasive weed. Other than that, it's a great tree."

Q. I have a matched set of glassware -- approximately 80 pieces -- that I am very fond of and have been using for a long time. Some of the pieces that I use regularly have developed minor surface scratches or abrasions that detract from their appearance. Do you know how I might restore them to something close to their original appearance? I cannot find replacements on the Internet.

-- Ron Morfick, of Belleville

A. Depending where those scratches are, you may find yourself in the clear -- or forever looking through your glasses darkly.

When Depression glass shows are in Belleville, they usually invite someone who can grind chips and other imperfections out of people's glass treasures. Richard Spencer, of the Illinois-Missouri Glass and China Club, says the same trick might work for you.

But it depends where those scratches are. If they're on the outside of the glass, a careful buffing might do the trick. But if they're on the inside, the buffing wheel probably won't be able to get to them.

In any case, I'll be sending you the number of an expert from Central Illinois who makes frequent trips to St. Louis and probably would be willing to at least talk to you about your problem.

Q. Where might I find a copy of the song "The Dipsy Doodle"?

-- L.J., of O'Fallon

A. Yet more evidence that my music collection may be getting out of control: I have this late 1930s novelty song on a Tommy Dorsey CD put out by Time-Life Music with Edythe Wright as the vocalist. You can find a copy of this and three other versions of bandleader Larry Clinton's signature song at www.yestermusic.com. Just search for "dipsy doodle."

Q. It seems I have to turn the volume up a lot higher on digital TV. Any reason?

-- F.B.D., of Swansea

A. Looks like ol' Abe Lincoln was right -- you may not be able to please all the people all the time.

Recently, I dealt with a question from a reader who wondered why TV commercials seemed so loud compared to the average program. So the folks who put together digital TV decided to use Dolby AC3 audio, said Chrys Marlow, vice president of engineering and operations at KETC-TV Channel 9 in St. Louis.

One of its primary features is something called dialogue normalization -- dial-norm for short -- which is designed to keep volume on a more even keel and your nerves from jangling so much.

"It's a very cool system," Marlow said. "The only problem is that it only works so long as, number one, it's understood by the producing party and, two, that the data carried with the signal doesn't get destroyed anywhere along the stream."

Marlow says he didn't notice much of a difference between analog and digital volume, but adds that changes could occur at any number of points in the transmission chain: how the signal is processed, how you're receiving it (satellite, cable or over-the-air) or even how your TV or external tuner processes the signal.

"All those will carry into it," Marlow said. "There's just so many things within the system that can affect it -- and affect it at different times."

Send your questions to Roger Schlueter, Belleville News-Democrat, 120 S. Illinois St., P.O. Box 427, Belleville, IL 62222-0427 or rschlueter@bnd.com