This month’s “animal” is the Historic Tree Cross Section at Bee City. Before anyone says, this is not an animal, you are correct. I thought the tree on display was cool and wanted to feature it. After all, it’s my article.
Everyday, we are around trees, they provide the air we breathe, the pollen we complain about, the shade to keep us cool, the sap that fall on our cars, lumber to build our houses, and the leaves to rake and limbs to pick up. It’s a love hate relationship with trees.
Take a look at a tree sometime and just think the number of events that have happened as a tree grows. Good times and bad times, it might be a tree house that was built when you were growing up or the tire swing that your dad placed in the tree for some summer fun, the rope over the river to cool off, and of course the trip to the emergency room to set the arm after all that summer fun. Been there done that!!!
The tree at bee city I am referring to in this article is a cross section located near the reptile area of Bee City Zoo. This shows the rings of a tree that was cut down in 2016 the rings correspond to years of its life. They also show drought, periods of good rainfall and infestation the tree may have had during its life. This display is a cross section of the tree dating back to the year of its birth, 1873 for lack of a better word. They have counted the rings, placed numbers on them and have a legend that tells what was happening in the world during its lifetime. This tree saw the first electric lights, Dr. Pepper coming to the stores, the Titanic sink, television coming on the air, the first cell phone, and hurricane Hugo just to name a few of the events.
So stop by and take a look at this tree, and take in the trees around you, they have witnessed history. Is this the Animal of the Month.” You decide they definitely have a story to tell.
The tree display can be visited at the Bee City Zoo.
