Oak trees gets attention

Magnificent Oak

Deep in the Heart of Beautiful, Downtown Historical Orange, Texas lives a magnificent and stately century old live oak tree. It is clear that this Fourth Street specimen with its knurled roots and huge canopy has survived many a high wind and hurricanes in its long lifetime.

Recently this Live Oak was the recipient of some much-needed tender loving care. The City of Orange was repairing a sidewalk damaged by the storm or just by years of abuse. Street and Drainage crew headed by Division Manager Mike Marcantel noticed that just a few feet away the sidewalk buckled from the protruding roots of this stately tree. Marcantel said, “Some citizens would have requested that the roots be removed in order to replace the sidewalk. This would surely weakened the tree and make it very vulnerable to high winds.” Tree wise as well as streetwise the crew removed only the buckled sidewalk and replaced the area with sand and soil covering and protecting the roots.

It’s a generous and noble act to protect, preserve, propagate and plant large canopy trees. Keep Orange County Beautiful, the local non-profit affiliate of Keep Texas Beautiful is proud to recognize the City of Orange’s Street and Drainage Department, as our Hometown Beautification Hero. For more information on Keep Orange County Beautiful visit our website at http://www.KOCB.org.