Somehow lived in Vancouver my whole life and never knew what an Arbutus tree looked like.

I think it’s a common municipal bylaw for communities on Vancouver Island that every second business has be named “Arbutus” something.

But seriously, it’s a really neat tree, plus the wood is a gorgeous red. An uncle made a crib out of an arbutus on his property that got felled. It’s absolutely gorgeous. It’s not a very straight tree though, so I don’t know of any large commercial use, so no Arbutus panelling, floors, banisters, etc. unless you happen to know someone with the ability to do it from scratch.

They look great, especially when mature. They still make a bit of a mess, since they shed their bark rather than their leaves. I guess it’s also a pretty weird tree.