告别古树

重庆 赵千秋

A handful of people gathered in Bethesda to say goodbye to the largest white oak in Montgomery County. The tree was estimated to be more than 300 years old. At around 9 am Tuesday, a chain saw buzzed as the blade bit into one of the Linden oak's limbs. Workers dressed in yellow vests and hard hats on a sunny, humid day used a crane to lower the branches of the tree before wrapping them in chains to secure them and saw them off.

A handful of people stood along the road at Beach Drive and Rockville Pike in North Bethesda to say goodbye—waiting to witness the removal of the largest white oak in Montgomery County. The Linden oak, which was said to be more than 300 years old, died last summer. The tree, with a rotting trunk and lost limbs, should be cut down to avoid danger, authorities decided.

Residents gazed at the workers sawing the arms of the tree and expressed sorrow. Kira Lueders, 83, parked her car on the side of the road for one last look at the tree she'd known for 60 years.“I've lived here since 1975. I've loved that tree,”Nemcosky said.“I have to say goodbye to that tree.”

After five hours of work, the tree's limbs no longer towered in the sky, and nothing was left except the 20-foot-tall remains of a barren old oak. Local carver Colin Vale will sculpt the tree into a bench for Montgomery Parks. He said the bench will pay homage to the tree's legacy.

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Why was the largest white oak in Montgomery County being removed?

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