Listen as Larry spoke with Dean Norton, Director of Horticulture at Mount Vernon George Washington’s Estate and Gardens, about a tree linked to President Washington that fell as a result of the windstorm.

Tree at Mount Vernon, linked to George Washington, felled in storm (The Washington Post)
Hundreds of trees came crashing down amid the fury of last week’s windstorm, and with the elements seemingly heedless of whose trees they were, it seemed sad but unsurprising that one of them stood on the grounds of Mount Vernon and dated to the days of George Washington.

It may even have been transplanted into the earth on the grounds of the first President’s home in Fairfax County, Va., more than 200 years ago by Washington himself, according to Robert Shenk, an official at the estate .

An entry made into Washington’s diary on July 13, 1785 said the hemlock was near the garden gates on that day, Shenk said.

Whether Washington prepared the soil and placed the tree with his own hands is not known, said Shenk, who is Mount Vernon’s senior vice president for visitor engagement. [Read More]

.@MountVernon’s Director of Horticulture, Dean Norton, tells us about the Washington-era Canadian Hemlock that fell during the wind storm on Friday, March 2. #windmageddon #NBC4DC #capitalweather pic.twitter.com/IltTyXTFCD

— Mount Vernon (@MountVernon) March 5, 2018

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