Two Cottonwood Trees with Character at Larry Moore Park

Neglected Cottonwood Tree

Larry Moore Park is a wonderful place to see a variety of trees in all states of growth and damage. I personally think the damaged ones are more interesting.

Their suffering at the hands of wind, storm, and lightening have given them character that distinguishes them from the other trees in the park. Often the trees are just skeletons and the only green thing about them is the mistletoe that feeds on them.  Such is the tree in the photo here, which was taken in winter about four years ago. Except for all that mistletoe, it was still pretty much intact.

Above is that same tree on March 4 last year, from the other side. You can see its broken branch, much of it still on the ground. It gets worse and worse every year. No one seems to care. The trees closer to the river are just left to disintegrate when they fall,  but they are a bit better at hauling off parts of this tree a few months after the branches break off. Maybe that's because it's in the middle of the park near the trail. Even the vandalized picnic bench has not been fixed in over a year.

Another Cottonwood in the Park

Today I shot this picture of a cottonwood tree near the other end of the park. It's actually not in the park itself, but on private property next to the park on the cul-de-sac.  It is beginning to leaf out with new growth, but you can see it's also been reshaped a bit by nature. It is very close to the south entrance of the park at the end of Riverbank.