BRACEBRIDGE — If trees could talk there is a good chance an old oak would be saying, “Thank you.”
As an arborist Kyle Vincent, manager at Coulson Brothers Arboriculture, likes to keep his eyes peeled for that special tree to celebrate Arbor Day with. The common Arbor Day tradition is to plant a tree but Vincent decided to look after a tree instead. They began in 2017 in a schoolyard tending to a large white pine that is a prominent feature in the Macaulay Public School playground. This year he had his eye on a big poplar at Annie Williams park but on Arbor Day, April 27, he found the ground at the park was saturated and although they may not have had an issue getting down to the area of the swim dock he decided getting back up with his equipment “would have been not good for the town.”
Plan B is a lesser-known treasure in the Town of Bracebridge but certainly not unimpressive in its own right. He predicts the oak tree between the parking and overflow lots of Peake Fields is well over 100 years old.
As an arborist Vincent is always keeping an eye out for gems like this one. Perhaps it was one of Bracebridge’s well-kept secrets. Its crown was crowded and pines had grown in over the years hiding its massive trunk from view.
“We gave it the space it needed to be recognized because the forest was cramping its style,” he said. “We opened it up and allowed it to breathe and the canopy to be shown. We gave it a proper beautifying.”
They also removed the deadwood, helping alleviate the weight of the canopy.
Now it stands out.
Vincent has a list of trees he hopes to tend to with this annual tradition he has started that will keep him busy every Arbor Day for several years — many of them, like this mighty oak, were spared by loggers over a century ago.
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