Every year around this time I wonder about the stinky trees. There are some seriously stinky trees in Portland — rotting fish and something worse wafting on the warm spring breeze. I think I’ve heard that some of them are ginkos, and that maybe we’ve made the situation worse by planting trees that are all one sex. The stinky sex, apparently.

The first time I encountered a stinky trees was on NW Hoyt between 20th and 21st. At first, I was concerned it was me, and then that someone was using the super stinky fish fertilizer. But no, it was coming from the sky! Now I notice the smell in many places throughout Portland, and I suppose I should view it as merely a sign that Portland is in the midst of spring.