WALLA WALLA, Washington—After a high-level operation, two Walla Walla champions became part of a national cloning project Tuesday. Throughout the procedure, both candidates wore wooden expressions. Neither cracked nor quivered, although both may have swayed a bit now and again. Afterward, buds from both were rushed to a nursery in Milton-Freewater. There, the cuttings will be coaxed to produce future generations of exceptional survivors destined for special grounds.

Welcome to the Champion Tree Project, the brainchild of a Copemish, Michigan, man who is dedicated to protecting and preserving America's best and biggest trees.

David Milarch was watching as Michael Jones, a certified arborist, swung up into the branches of the first tree, a national record-size catalpa tree on Estrella Street. High in the tree's crown, Jones carefully snipped branches bearing buds, which were then sent down to Milarch and his son, Jared, waiting below.

The Milarchs had been directed to the catalpa by Shirley Muse, a member of the city's Urban Forestry Advisory Committee. Muse, who Milarch said "is one of the most well-informed, articulate big-tree people that we've ever run into across the country," later directed the crew to a giant sycamore on Reser Road near Walla Walla High School, where they collected their second set of buds.

Those buds are now at Schichtel's Nursery in Milton-Freewater, one of the nurseries used by the Champion Tree Project to propagate champion cuttings.

The Walla Walla trees rate as state or national champions based on their circumference, crown spread and height. Walla Walla has about 50 record trees, Milarch said, a number practically no other city can boast.

En route to Vancouver, Washington, Wednesday, Milarch said he learned about Walla Walla's record-sized trees during previous visits and decided to collect samples this year during his annual collection. He vowed he will be back next year to collect more cuttings.

"Little did we know that you have close to 50 state champions in that one town, which makes that the highest concentration of champion trees in the continental United States. It is big tree nirvana," he said. In comparison, Milarch said, "The state of Ohio has six national champions in the whole state. The state of Wisconsin has 12 in the whole state, the state of Minnesota has four, there's four or five states that have none, and yet in Walla Walla there're 50 state champions in one little city."

The Milarchs are in the midst of an annual summer trek to collect as many cuttings as possible from state and national champion trees for cloning.

The Champion Tree Project began in 1996 by Milarch to "preserve, protect, propagate and plant" America's best and biggest trees. The project has grown into a nonprofit foundation endorsed by the National Tree Trust, a public group devoted to tree planting established by President George Bush in 1990.

Milarch has his work cut out for him. There are more than 1,000 known national champion trees in the United States, and he can only get to about 50 per year.

As for the cuttings taken Tuesday, the buds from the sycamore are very likely to one day be destined for a special fate, Milarch said.

One of the people with the group was Dean Norton, the chief horticulturist with Mount Vernon, the 550-acre estate which was home to George and Martha Washington and now houses the president's tomb. Washington loved sycamore trees and planted many on his estate. The sycamore planted next to his tomb is dying and the clone from the Walla Walla tree is likely to replace it.

"When (Norton) saw that sycamore with an eight-foot diameter trunk... he asked me, 'David, is there any chance when these clones become available, could we get one of these to bring back to Washington, D.C., and plant at George Washington's tomb?'... and I said absolutely. One of the very first clones of your famous tree will go to Mount Vernon, I gave my word," Milarch said.

© Walla Walla Union-Bulletin 2001

TERRA: Champion Trees and Ancient Forests — www.championtrees.org — updated 8/1/2001