Options for Toomer's oaks to go to AU president in July

Officials at Auburn University plan to present the president with a number of options next month to help preserve the trees at Toomer’s Corner and maintain the tradition of “rollin’” them.

“We hope to come out of that (meeting) with a preferred alternative and a fundraising plan because no one has the money for this right now,” said Cathy Love, an engineer with Campus Planning and Space Management.

John Mouton, the senior adviser to the president, said officials realized the situation at the corner needed attention after an extensive investigation of the trees was performed last year.
“The good news is the trees are not dying,” he said.

Officials have reported substantial growth in the trees this spring, and the larger of the two Live oaks has shown signs of recovery from a gaping wound incurred a few years ago when a vehicle hit it, but more needs to be done.

A clean-up scheduled for Saturday will help, but Auburn needs a long-term solution that addresses the urban setting and the way the toilet paper is removed.

Mouton said the urban setting is more detrimental to the health of the trees. Love contends the high-pressure wash used the morning after is much worse. It doesn’t help either that the Live oak is not indigenous to this area. The urban environment may help the trees retain heat, but she said they can’t take the cold on the Plains.

“The trees are living things, like humans,” Love said. “There are things we can do to prolong their lives.”

Mouton said one option for the trees is to take up all the surrounding concrete and replace it with a solid, but porous surface. Love said another is to expand the mulch beds to allow more water and air to reach the roots zone, but the sidewalk would have to be realigned.

As for the tradition, Mouton said the paper must be removed the next day. When it’s not, “people light it on fire, which is more damaging,” he said. And when it rains, the wet paper puts more pressure on the branches.

Love said she thought the trees used to be cleaned by hand, but as the volume of paper grew, a new method was sought. An air hose was ineffective, plus the paper would blow away. The high-power hose got the job done and prevented the paper from blowing away, but she said it also knocks off valuable leaves and buds.

Both Mouton and Love said one of the best options for the trees is to not use them at all; use wire instead. Fans used to roll the wire that held the traffic lights on the corners, Mouton said. The city put up metal poles instead and fans turned to the trees because toilet paper wouldn’t stick to the new poles.

“We’ve talked about putting wires up,” Love said, but that’s a major step that involves the city.

aweaver@oanow.com | 737-2534