Casa Linda's Valley Oak: The End of an Era

Woodland is known as the City of Trees, a reputation it undoubtedly upholds. Beautiful old trees can be found in several locations around town, each with its own fascinating history.

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end.

On September 9th, a 400-year-old valley oak tree on Casa Linda Drive was removed due to safety concerns.

The tree was one of the last remnants of a time when vast forests covered the area. As farmers developed the land around Woodland in the mid-1800s for growing, most of the trees were chopped down for lumber. Fortunately, a few have survived to today.

An estimate from the Woodland Tree Foundation states that the tree, which stood 94 feet tall, weighed around 146,191 pounds (roughly forty-seven Toyota Prius cars). In its lifetime, the tree had captured 125,000 pounds of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

When the Casa Linda Park housing development was built in the 1950s, the developer specifically instructed engineers to curve the street and sidewalk around the tree to avoid cutting it down. This was a rare thing to happen; aside from the Beamer Park development, built in 1913, not many developers in Woodland had been interested in preserving ancient trees. Perhaps this is the reason why the Casa Linda oak served as the model for the tree on the city’s flag.

Sadly, since that time, the monstrous oak has experienced significant damage to its base and limbs. A risk assessment published by Tree Associates, Inc. in August 2021 concluded that the tree was structurally unsound and could possibly fall within the next twenty years, or lose a limb in the next five.

John Lichter, the arborist who conducted the assessment, used tomography (basically SONAR but for trees) and drill tests to evaluate the health of the tree. His findings suggest that the base and trunk had been subjected to internal decay, which ate away at dense core hardwood. Lichter found similar decay in and around some of the more prominent limbs.

The possibility that the tree was structurally compromised had been known for some time before this report. In 1970, a large limb fell onto the lawn of the house at 304 Casa Linda Dr, narrowly missing a group of teenagers having a party. In 2000, another limb fell, this time causing major damage to the house itself. At that time, the homeowner petitioned the city to remove the tree for safety, but was denied by a 3 to 1 vote.

I visited the site of the oak tree the day before it was cut down. The appearance of the tree was striking; in the late afternoon sun, the tall, dense canopy provided shade to at least four houses down the street. Looking up from the base of the tree felt like standing beneath a cathedral of nature. Two pieces of paper were attached to the trunk. One was a laminated notice of the tree’s imminent removal, and the other an anonymous poem titled “Goodbye Ancient One.” It was a somber moment when I reflected that, in less than twenty-four hours, this seemingly immobile behemoth of wood, bark, and leaf would stand no more.

As of now, the city plans to memorialize the oak on Arbor Day of 2022, as well as preserve some of the wood for benches and public display.

Lichter, John. “Advanced (Level 3) Risk Assessment: Valley Oak - Casa Linda Drive, Woodland, California.” Tree Associates, Inc., 13 Aug 2021.

“Structural Issues Force Valley Oak Removal, City Plans Commemorative Efforts.” City of Woodland News, 3 Sept 2021. https://www.cityofwoodland.org/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=616

Wilkinson, David. Excerpt from “Gertrude's Oaks.” Chapter 19.

Wilkinson, D., & Frankenbach, R. (n.d.). Landmark Trees. Landmark Trees | Woodland, CA.

Retrieved September 14, 2021, from https://www.cityofwoodland.org/1189/Landmark-Trees.