El Palo Alto seedlings may go international El Palo Alto seedlings may go international (October 10, 2003)

Historic 'living landmark' to join ranks of featured historic American trees

by Jay Thorwaldson

El Palo Alto, the "living landmark" of Palo Alto that was a seedling when Christ walked the Earth, may soon become internationally known through the sale of new seedlings.

Dave Dockter, the city's arborist, announced the impending fame for Palo Alto's old tree during an award ceremony Wednesday evening for Canopy, the tree-advocate group (see story on page 6, second section).

Dockter said he spoke at a National Urban Forest conference in San Antonio, Texas, in September and mentioned the long history of El Palo Alto -- which served as a landmark for Indians over centuries and early Spanish explorers in 1776. The tree, which once had two trunks until one fell across San Francisquito Creek, has been nurtured for decades by the city, operated on for airborne termite infestations, and protected by young "nurse redwoods" around its base.

Dockter said a group that propagates historic trees and sells seedlings internationally was at the San Antonio conference.

"They were so turned on by El Palo Alto that they want to do seedlings to sell all around the world," Dockter told the group, adding that he just found out about the interest an hour before the 5:30 p.m. awards reception.

He said he would be propagating the seeds.

A prior city arborist, George Hood, in the 1960s and 1970s made it a personal hobby to propagate El Palo Alto seeds -- a notoriously difficult task for California redwoods, in which only one in hundreds of seeds will sprout. Hood gave out "El Nino Palo Alto" seedlings as civic awards.

One El Nino seedling was planted at Mitchell Park in the 1970s, and is now a tall tree.