The Trees of Myrtle Beach

One of the things I love about our condo is where it is located in Myrtle Beach. The area is called Ocean Forest. It is a couple of miles north of the main hubbub where the boardwalk and the bulk of the high-rises are. It is in a mostly residential area with lots of trees! When you are on our balcony and look right, you see the coastline and the Atlantic Ocean, looking left you see nothing but tree tops and greenery. Except for a few rogue property owners who cleared their lots, all the houses are hidden beneath thick trees. Myrtle Beach can be quite hot in the middle of summer so I am sure all that shade helps with the electric bills!

At any rate, besides all the deliberately planted palm trees, Myrtle Beach has many Live Oaks as they are called. These trees grow into the neatest twisting turning shapes, some of them quite large. They hold their leaves year-round, are very resistant to the salt air and salt spray that is tough on other trees.

The other day I made a very short drive to a small park along Ocean Boulevard to get some pictures of these trees. Here are a few pictures to show the growth pattern....

And saving my favorite for last!

These trees are directly across the road from the ocean. That's how close they live to all that salt water! Often times you will see photos of these trees covered in Spanish Moss. I haven't seen much of it close to the ocean so it could be it can't deal with the salt.

Part of the reason I love Myrtle Beach so much, despite having beach towns in Virginia that are a much shorter drive, is all the vegetation. It is just enough warmer year-round that many plants that can't survive a Virginia winter, do survive in South Carolina. There are several (non-native) species of Palm Trees, Hibiscus bushes, the Live Oaks I showed here, several flowering bushes I don't know the names for, as well as a variety of sand dune flowering plants. It just makes it feel a bit more exotic!

Have a great weekend, Everyone!