It is with some sadness that I must report the national champion shortleaf pine from Ashley County, Arkansas, has been broken off in a recent windstorm at about 40 feet in a recent windstorm. It has one very small live branch remaining green, but I do not expect this tree to survive long in this condition. I have attached a few pictures of this fallen giant--it is clear from the final photo that the combination of redheart (a fungal disease of the heartwood) and a strong wind were too much for this champion. The same windstorm felled a number of other large loblolly and shortleaf pine in the Levi Wilcoxon Demonstration Forest, a small remnant old-growth pine stand.
- Though the sign says only state champ, this was the national champion from 2006 on, and had a sine height of 136 feet and circumference of 113 inches.
- You can see the one small green branch still remaining...
- The ultimate cause: redheart plus wind
I believe the landowner is looking to salvage the wood from this and the other trees that fell over, but seems willing to work with my research unit to get the scientific value we can from these trees. So, I'll try to get a number of wood samples and make sure to get ring counts. If they cannot find some mill to buy these very large logs (a distinct possibility), I'm going to encourage them to make them into a display or donate them as a display for a local museum (or just see if they won't leave them on site as coarse woody debris).
I will probably start searching this stand later this fall to see if I can't find a new champion shortleaf!
