Alawood Tree

From ElanVital

The alawood is a common tree throughout Titania, popular both for its appealing appearance and many uses. Used in many places for landscaping purposes, it's also cultivated in Petakova for use in carpentry (mostly decoratively) and for its fruit.

The trunk of the alawood tree is notoriously unique in coloring--the bark being a pale blue. Much like birch, the blue bark of the alawood tree to reveal a white skin, of sorts. This skin belies the wood's true color, when cut--which is a deep, rich blue, so dark as to be just a shade shy of black. In the right lights, reds may be caught in the grain of the wood. Though not terribly sturdy for practical purposes, it is widely considered the most beautiful wood available for decorative ones.

The alawood flowers early in the spring of every year--one of the first plants to bloom, really. Its flowers are a rich, glossy maroon color--shaped more or less in the four-petal style of a dogwood, or a shamrock. Its center is a single black joint. Waxy to the touch, bitter to taste, the flower isn't valued for much other than its aesthetic value. Shortly after these flowers come the fruit--sweet, juicy, and nutritious... if a bit on the sugary side. In full season, the alawood is covered with pale green, almond-shaped leaves.

The alawood is a native Voltumnan plant, and commonly home to the Alabear, which is widely hailed as a pest. Still, the benefits of the tree appear to outweigh their way of attracting these creatures, and it is appreciated for being the acknowledged most colorful plant yet known.