The tree that owns itself

Been there. Mused at it, didn't really get it, noticed the cracks in the retaining wall and never returned.

If it can't afford an attorney, sooner or later, its a stump...

Hmm. I bet the roots go way past that eight feet..

Not sure if white oaks are treated with the same care as california live oaks, re care regarding the roots.

I love the idea of a tree owning itself. Too bad many more don't have that kind of protection.

One of my ideas of what to do with my body after my death includes cremation, which is probably what will happen, but also to be buried under a tree, providing nourishment and something of my spirit. But how awful if the tree got cut down to make room for a housing development!

There are a few 'graveyards' that provide treeside burial in a spot that will always be protected.

Some dratted developer will likely find a way around the restrictions and put up a development anyway. Damn.

I guess I should explain what I'm getting at about roots..

We entirely rerouted a long drive to a hotel site to avoid putting it over the oaks' root areas (much less at the level the engineers first had it at.) In the case of california live oaks that's important as they're very shallow rooted and picky about nutrients. So, if that were a CA live oak, the paving would be a problem, and the tree wouldn't really be owning all of itself.

I suspect though that's not true, or not as true, of the white oak.

I think I thought the same sort of things as I stood there and looked at it. Tree roots are generally considered to reach out to the width of the crown of the tree. This tree's crown reached out to at least the outside edges of the road that surrounds it.

agreed, in my own obscure way...

Love trees, don't trust lawyers much.

and sometimes way past the crown. I don't want to go looking up some drawings, just got my computer back in working order after it crashed upon addition of some updates. (Learn something new yet again, it was the disk permissions or somesuch).

Well f*ck it all, I just love the idea of a tree owning itself.

<biggrin>