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Roger Conner, Landscape Services Superintendent of Tree Management for Duke’s Facilities Management Department, said that willow oaks often live roughly 80 to 90 years under ideal woodland conditions. Despite the stressors the tree has faced being in the heart of Duke’s busy campus, it has exceeded its expected lifespan.

“It’s lived more life than expected given the tree’s location,” said Roger Conner, Landscape Services Superintendent of Tree Management for Duke’s Facilities Management Department. “It’s quite remarkable when you think about it.”

Due to decay and having reached or approached the end of their lifespan, five other trees on West Campus and three trees on East Campus will be removed and replaced with other trees.

Through visual inspections and techniques that use sensors and sound waves – called sonic tomography – to provide a digital look inside a tree’s trunk, experts can determine the health of a tree. Facilities Management the condition and safety of more than 17,000 campus trees, keeping an especially close eye on the older trees shading the walkways and quads on East and West campuses.

In recent years, as part of the evaluation process, Duke has monitored and managed the removal and replacement of several aging trees that have stood for decades.

“Replacing older trees is something we have to do as part of tree care,” Conner said.

Concerns about the health of the willow oak on Abele Quad comes from large cavities appearing in the trunk, dying limbs, thinning of the leaves at its crown and sonic tomography readings that show significant decay within its core.

The removal of the willow oak on Abele Quad is expected to take place by Jan. 5. A Jefferson elm tree, which will already be around 10-15 years old, will be planted in its place on the same corner of Abele Quad.

Duke’s efforts to conserve its trees and care for them in a sustainable way has earned the university the Arbor Day Foundation’s Tree Campus Higher Education distinction in each of the past 16 years. Trees removed on campus are evaluated for milling potential during the removal process, and wood that cannot be milled is chipped into mulch, stored and used for landscaping.

Notable uses of wood in recent years include paneling in the Duke Student Wellness Center, all decking/railings at the Duke Pond, and a series of tables, doors and cabinetry across campus. Wood from the oaks being removed during Winter Break is currently being evaluated for milling and use as paneling and finish work in the Reuben-Cooke Building project.

“Removing a tree that is still living is a decision we consider thoroughly,” Conner said.

As Duke celebrates its centennial year, , and other older campus trees see as much of Duke’s second century as possible.

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