Cloning the Redwood’s Fernleaf Beech Newport’s Living History in Trees by Don Dery slavery was abolished in Jamaica and all other countries comprising the British Empire. The tree, as old and incredible as it is, reminds us that our trees carry the living history of our City—both good and bad—forward into our future, equally as much as our most impressive preserved architecture. A few months ago, in May 2019, that marvelous fernleaf beech tree gave birth to its first offsprings with the capable assistance of the Heritage Tree Center of the Newport Tree Conservancy. Horticulturists successfully grafted a vastly smaller offshoot using the ancient cloning method that has been used for thousands of years. Charles Sprague Sargent (1841-1927), Director of the Arnold Arboretum called the parent tree “the finest of its kind in America.” The Tree Conservancy staff and horticultural interns from the Newport Project at Rogers High School helped write the newest chapter of Newport’s fascinating horticultural history. In the past Newport residents planted for the excitement of showcasing new species arriving in America from all over the world. Today, the Tree Conservancy staff and interns are replanting an aging urban forest, fighting climate change, responding to the ongoing extinction event in our region and across the globe . . . and building a true arboretum across our entire City. Birthday greetings to the Redwood’s 184-year-old fernleaf beech tree as we await the arrival of your successor. Don Dery is a Corporate Communications Consultant and etc. Editorial Advisor.
Photo: David Hansen
It was born in England about 1830, carried gently across the Atlantic Ocean in 1835 by Robert Johnston (1783 – 1839), and planted in the front yard of The Redwood Library and Athenæum. It stands there still almost 200 years later, stately and majestic. Its trunk is enormous, its many branches huge, supporting thousands of beautiful leaves which shade the surrounding lawn and Library visitors. Johnston was a Scotsman, born in Jamaica but living in Newport. He was an enthusiastic patron of sylviculture, a popular pursuit of many of the colony’s earliest community members, including Abraham Redwood, founder of the Redwood in 1764. Abraham was an avid gardener. Johnston often returned to his birthplace to manage the family’s plantations, and like so many of the colonists he brought with him the English tradition of experimental horticulture mixed with lifelong exposure to exotic tropical flora. The British Governor of Granada, in a 1764 letter, wrote of a world community steeped in domestic cultivation. “The roads of the Island are bordered with a variety of ornamental trees,” he wrote. “Nearly every farm has its orchard of engrafted trees of every description, suited to the climate. The whole Island is of an excellent soil, and under the highest state of cultivation. In the vicinity of the Town are several fine gardens . . . their greenhouses and hot houses producing the fruits and plants of every clime.” Johnston’s fernleaf beech tree was planted in front of the Redwood’s magnificent architectural building just one year after
Horticultural interns from Rogers High School stand by the enormous trunk of the Redwood’s ancient fernleaf beech tree. The students assisted Heritage Tree Center staff in grafting a baby tree from the parent.
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