A 25-foot-tall Louisiana live oak tree found a new place to put roots Wednesday in the Old Orange Historic District. It has been planted across the street and only feet away from an oak tree now dying after it was struck by lightning Monday afternoon during a storm.
Kevin McAdams and Leslie Barras purchase the new tree from Wilkinson Tree Farm in Iowa, Louisiana. The tree had been on order before the lightning strike at a neighbor’s house two days earlier.
The couple have remodeled and added on to a house on Cypress Avenue at Ninth Street. “We didn’t have time to wait 20 years for a little one to grow,” Barras said. They have named the new addition “Naomi.”
A special truck delivered the live oak with its branches bound like a Christmas tree. The heavy equipment dug a hole to fit the root ball that was yards wide. Workers then unbound the branches. They folded out to begin providing shade against the bright fall sun.
Press Release from KOCB
– It has been said, “The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago!”
Since this is impossible, the next best thing is to transplant a tree that is 20 years old.
Meet Naomi, fresh from Louisiana, this 25 feet+ Live Oak Tree was recently planted in the beautiful downtown historical Orange neighborhood by owners Leslie Barras and Kevin McAdams.
After the property lost a mature Live Oak during Hurricane Rita, the couple decided they did not want to wait another 20 years for the economical and environmental benefits provided by a full-grown canopy tree.
They “dug deep”- literally and figuratively- and purchased Naomi (lovingly named by Leslie’s mother). Trees have always been part of Orange County’s Cultural Heritage. The benefit of trees is immense. A single tree will absorb one ton of carbon dioxide over its lifetime.
It is a generous and noble act to protect, preserve, propagate and plant large canopy trees. For this reason Keep Orange County Beautiful is pleased to recognize Barras and McAdams for this valuable gift with its ensuing environmental benefits; and proud to name them KOCB’s Hometown Beautification Hero.
Keep Orange County Beautiful is an affiliate of Keep Texas Beautiful. For more information on KOCB visit our website at www.KOCB.org
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