"The Pork Chop Tree" is a glimpse into James H. Schmitz's universe of The Hub, apparently with recurring characters featured in other stories. In this short, Trigger and Prof. Mantelish discover the dangers of a relationship between a plant and the humans it loves.
This is, perhaps coincidentally, an alternate take on Shel Silverstein's "The Giving Tree." Both were first published in 1965.
I'm reading this from Schmitz's short story collection, "A Pride of Monsters," published in paperback by Collier Books in 1973. Check out the cover art; it's bonkers. (Hardcover by MacMillan, 1970; both versions copyright 1970 by James H. Schmitz).