Hero for a Day No r t h C a r o l i n a U r b a n F o r e s t C o u n c i l T by L. Robbie King


he sounds of buzzing saws, clanging shov- els, and milling voices broke the typical


The two trees that were removed


provided an increasingly rare commodity, wide- width hardwood.


Saturday morning lull of Salem last November 21st, alerting sleepy residents that something different was happening that day. While the curious stretched themselves awake and reached for that first cup of coffee, a group of energized volunteers and Old Salem staff fanned out across the historic district to tackle a day of tree pruning, removal, and planting. The group was led by the North Carolina Urban Forest Council, a nonprofit organization that helps communities strengthen the efforts of local groups by serving as a resource and an advocate of the urban forest. Consisting of certified arborists, foresters, landscape architects, and tree professionals from all


areas of the state, the council supports commu- nities in their urban forest management efforts. The group’s presence in Old Salem marked


their sixth annual “Hero for a Day: Arborist Service Day,” a time when volunteers come together to share in the work of revitalizing the tree canopy of a targeted area. In Salem’s case, this work included removing eleven dead or damaged trees, as well as the beneficial pruning of various trees throughout the historic district. The removal of trees was mitigated by planting a total of fifteen large maples and service berrys.


The work also extended to deep-root fertilization of several trees, including the state’s largest speci- men of ailanthus, located in the north yard of the J. Blum House at 724 South Main Street. This generous donation of time and materials


marked a significant contribution to the cur- rent and future treescape of Salem. However, as anyone who has experienced tree removal in their own yard can attest, what looks like a manageable sized tree prior to cutting, becomes an enormous amount of material once it hits the ground. Thus, the day’s work also included the disposal of all that woody material, a process that happened to increase Old Salem’s bounty. Apart from the obvious benefit of a wel-


come supply of firewood for Old Salem’s many hearths, a quantity of the material was mulched and stored for later use in gardens and along paths. More notably, at least two trees that were removed provided an increasingly rare commod- ity, wide-width hardwood. Old Salem’s Historic Trades Department secured the trunk of an eighty-year-old walnut tree, which was located


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Old Salem Museums & Gardens


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