Arbor Fructuum
History
The Arbor Fructuum, or Tree of Many Fruits, was first genetically bread in a laboratory by an arch wizard in an attempt to create a year-round food source for the city of Carcino. Once planted in the city however, the tree began to spread around the world by seeds carried by seagulls and squirrels. Because of the nutrient requirements of the tree however, this has resulted in a hostile takeover of a locations soil nutrients by the Arbor Fructuum. Unbeknownst to the arch wizard who created the original tree, he had gone to create an entire new race. About 100 years after the global spread of these trees, it was discovered (by another arch wizard) that the Arbor Fructuum trees where intelligent and sentient creatures.Many Fruits
Because the tree contains many different species of flowering fruits, the tree appears constantly in bloom. This was by design, leading to a constant supply of food no matter the time of year. Due to the trees bountiful nature, it has become a staple in many druid groves, with some arch druids constructing entire grove-orchards out of the tree.Basic Information
Growth Rate & Stages
Seedling Stage
Fruit trees, especially the Arbor tree are angiosperms that rely on flowers to reproduce. The life cycle of these trees starts with a seed. The seed of the Arbor tree is large and striped with browns, reds, greens, and dark purples.Germination
Arbor seeds germinate when the seed is wet and placed in slightly moist soil. As night comes, the soil gets slightly cooled, keeping the seed moist but not moldy.Sprouting
Between one to three months sprouting growths should appear depending on the region and climate, with warmer regions giving faster growth rates.Sapling Stage
The sapling stage lasts anywhere from 24 days to 1 year before it grows into a small Arbor tree.Small Tree
Small Arbor trees are beautiful and fragrant, and almost appear bush-like with their large bulbus canopy and short stock. This will change over the next 3-4 years as the tree grows taller. In this stage the tree is beginning to flower, however it is likely that the tree has yet to get the climate cycle down, so it can have 1-3 month periods without any flowering occurring, as the tree's structure changes and acclimates.Mature Stage
Flowers
Arbor trees flower to reproduce, in each flower are male anthers that make sperm-laden pollen and the female pistil, consisting of the stigma at the tip, and the style and the ovary at the base. Insect pollinators move the pollen from the anthers to the stigma, where sperm cells enter the stigma, travel through the style and into the ovary to fertilize the ovules inside. These fertilized ovules become seeds. The ovary grows into a modified seed pod, with a thick wall around the seed. The wall is full of sugars that taste sweet and good to eat, enticing animals to spread the Arbor seeds far and wide.Fruits
A young Arbor tree will grow about 18-24 inchers per year. The Arbor tree matures after 3-5 years, fruiting for the first time marks the beginning of this stage. A mature tree grows anywhere from 6-12 inchers per year.Ecology and Habitats
Arbor trees are extremely cold-hardy and hot-hardy, and because of their genetic design, are constantly in bloom unlike most every other plant. They prefer an arid climate with well drained sandy loams, but can be grown in a temperate climate with a slower seedling growth cycle. They can be found in thickets, along roadsides, and other disturbed habitats.
Dietary Needs and Habits
The Arbor gets its nutrients like most plants do, through its root system. However, because the tree is constantly in the two states of flowering and fruiting, it consumes nutrients and water viciously from the land. This process leaves soil loose and devoid of valuable nutrients for even grass to grow, causing the land to erode away within 150 years.
Geographic Distribution
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