TRAVERSE CITY, Michigan (AP)—George Washington built his plantation on the Potomac River amid soaring trees, many centuries old.
Now, plans are in the works to replenish the woods of Mount Vernon with genetic copies of trees that were alive when he was president.
It's part of a campaign by the Michigan-based Champion Tree Project International and partner groups to grow clones of the biggest, hardiest trees around the country.
"What better place to have champion trees than at the home of our founding father and the final resting place for America's veterans," said George Cates, executive director of the National Tree Trust.
Project partners also are arranging to plant clones in Arlington National Cemetery and in Salt Lake City for the 2002 Winter Olympics.
The latest count, announced last year, had 867 trees representing 826 species. Florida led the way with 170; Michigan ranked sixth with 51.
Five years ago, nurseryman David Milarch and his son, Jared, established the Champion Tree Project. They say the nation's forests are suffering from pollution, over-harvesting and disease, and that ancient giants may be their salvation.
"In the botanical world, they're heroes and survivors," Milarch said. "They've withstood everything man and nature could throw at them for centuries."
The Milarchs and their associates have taken twigs or buds from 52 national champions. With funding help from the National Tree Trust, thousands of clones are being grown in nurseries. Dozens have been planted at universities, parks and gardens, which project leaders hope will become "Living Libraries" for research.
Champion trees are the biggest—and often among the oldest—known members of their species in the United States. American Forests, based in Washington, D.C., has kept a register for 60 years, using a formula based on height, circumference and crown width to designate champions.
Like other trees, the champions do reproduce naturally. But for most species, two parents are needed to produce a seedling.
The project, David Milarch said, attempts to produce large numbers of exact, 100 percent copies of the champions on the theory that they would be likelier to grow bigger, live longer and resist disease better than trees with 50 percent champion genes.
| National Champion
Red Ash Dowagiac, Michigan |
|---|
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crown spread: 96 feet |
Opinions are mixed about whether the gold medalists' size and longevity result from superior genes or good luck.
"In my experience, the biggest trees are growing in favorable sites, with plentiful moisture and protection from high winds, hurricanes and the like," said plant ecologist Peter Del Tredici of Harvard University's Arnold Arboretum. "The assumption that there's some genetic propensity that makes them the biggest could be true, but we don't know that."
Dean Norton, director of horticulture for the Mount Vernon Estate, accepts the good-genes theory.
"Why do they take Secretariat and other great horses and breed them? It's the same with plants—survival of the fittest," Norton said. "When you're trying to propagate a plant, you always look for the healthiest, fastest-growing specimen to take cuttings."
While not in imminent danger, the trees are aging. Norton says it's time to get a new generation in the ground.
Mount Vernon's remaining old-growth woodlands are a crucial buffer between the 500-acre estate and urban sprawl extending southward from the nation's capital, 16 miles away.
A National Champion Red Ash from Dowagiac, one of the species whose clones have matured, may be planted at Mount Vernon this fall. Large-scale planting will take longer, pending development of clones native to the area, such as the white oak, sycamore and American beech.
On the Net
http://www.championtrees.org