In the shadow of Canada’s largest cluster of buildings, Toronto hopes to preserve a centuries – old oak tree. But efforts are complicated by the pandemic.
The Red Oak tree, 24 meters (79 feet) tall, is estimated to be 300 years old and is one of the oldest trees in the area which French explorers set up a trading post on the coast near Lake Ontario.
The tree is now found in the back yard of an unoccupied bungalow on a nondescript street in the heart of a North York neighborhood.
Its massive trunk is five meters in circumference and has brushed up against the back of the 1960s house.
In summer, its long leafy branches provide shade from the sun.
But in recent years, a new homeowner has expressed concern about being able to maintain proper trees and breaking down the foundations of its original home.
Neighbors also fear that this specimen may one day be damaged by strong winds or felled in a storm.
To protect it for everyone in this city of 6 million people, the Toronto City Council voted in 2018 to buy the property, demolish houses and turn land into a small public park.
Takes your breath away
There was an agreement with the landlord last year to sell the property to the city.
Edith George, a local who has been pushing for the protection of the oak tree for more than 14 years, was delighted by the return, saying her beauty “takes your breath away”.
“It’s a Rolls-Royce of inherited trees. No other tree in Canada has the heritage value of this tree,” the 68-year-old retiree told AFP.
Specialists say that under careful and proper conditions, the tree can live for another 200 years or more.
“A tree like this is expensive to maintain. If the lot is a public space, the city will be able to take care of it as much as I can,” said Ali Simaga, who bought the house in 2015.
“I don’t want to be selfish and keep it to myself,” he adds.
However, the deal has not yet been done. The city purchase offer is conditional on personal donations to cover half of the price for the property.
Fundraising began in December 2019 with the goal of raising CAN $ 430,000 (US $ 325,000) by the end of this year.
After a promising start, including a $ 100,000 pledge from several local philanthropists, contributions declined during the pandemic.
As the mid-July, it had raised $ 125,000, or nearly 30 percent of the target.
If the target is missed by a certain date without any extension, the money raised will help plant trees throughout the city and the future of the historic oak tree is in doubt.
Canadian heritage
The tree is located along the former Humber Valley trail used by the aborigines and later traversed by European fur traders between Lake Ontario and Lake Simco – the foot of a trade route from the Gulf of Mexico to the northern shores of the Great Lakes to the mainland, according to historian Madeleine McDowell.
Tourists used large trees as landmarks, she said. This oak is already big When the French lost the territory to the British in 1793, who established York City which would later become Toronto.
“It’s an amazing tree,” said Manjit Zeta, director of the Toronto Partnership Office.
“It’s a part of Toronto’s heritage. It’s part of Canada’s heritage and it tells the story of our country,” she said.
Last year the city unveiled a commemorative queue in its honor, the first of its kind for a single tree in the nation’s largest metropolis.
Its environmental value is no less: the oak tree absorbs and stores more than 11 tons of carbon in the atmosphere.
“It’s a survivor and gives hope for a dangerous planet.”
Cover Photo : Olivier Monnier
