By Jason Emerson
Everything that lives must die; and the Blue Spruce tree that has served for decades as the Cazenovia Community Christmas Tree is dying. Soon, the tree will be cut down to make way — and give better light and more room — to the succeeding holiday tree, which made its Christmas debut this past December.
The decision to cut down such a fixture of the village was not an easy one, but it was necessary, said Trustee Amy Mann, who is also village board liaison to the Village Tree Commission.
“All village tree removals are difficult and emotional. This one is obviously particularly so. It has not, however, always been the village’s main Christmas tree; it replaced the one that was used when I grew up, and now it is going to bow to its successor,” Mann said.
The new village Christmas tree, which was planted in 2010, is a 25-foot-tall Norway Spruce located only a few feet away from the older tree, on village property in front of the Presbyterian Church near Sullivan Street.
“While it is not yet nearly as striking as its predecessor, it has easily tripled in size and rose to the occasion quite nicely in December. With more light and better growing conditions, it should continue to quickly grow to delight residents for years to come. In the meantime, we will continue the circle of life by planting another new tree in the vicinity,” said Mann.
The next tree to be planted, like the current one, will be donated by Matt and Juanita Critz of Critz Farms.
The decision to remove the longtime village Christmas tree is because it is declining rapidly in health due to the disease Cytospora Canker which has a “devastating impact” on the tree starting with the lower limbs, according to Village Tree Commission Director Tom Tait. Plus, the tree had also become so large that the village Department of Public Works can no longer place Christmas lights higher in the tree.
“Even if the Blue Spruce were in optimum health we would have needed to transition to a smaller tree,” Tait said. “It is our intention to plant a young Spruce tree over the next few years to eventually serve as [the new tree’s] replacement. The tree commission and the Village of Cazenovia have a civic responsibility to ensure that a few trees are always be in place at this location to serve as our cherished Christmas tree.”
Removal of the tree has not been scheduled yet, but DPW Director Bill Carr said he would prefer removal to occur soon, while the ground is frozen equipment will not sink into the mud and tear up the grass. The tree will be taken down by a professional tree company, with village DPW crews expected to remove the wood and do cleanup, Mann said.
Once the tree is removed, it will be recycled in ways that will continue its legacy of serving the community, said Mayor Kurt Wheeler.
“The plan is to repurpose as much as possible of the old tree either via lumber or chips,” Wheeler said. “The timing is perfect as we will begin laying out some initial walking paths in the new ‘Henry Burden Park’ on the land along Chenango Street/Chittenango Creek donated by Dudley Johnson, and the lumber and mulch can be the birth of something new there.”
Ideas for recycling the removed tree, in addition to wood chips for the Henry Burden Park, include mulch for the new Community Christmas Tree, park benches, picnic tables or possibly even commemorative wooden Christmas ornaments, Wheeler said.
