Deodar Cedar

 

8/14/23 Activists and other concerned citizens
gather around a Deodar cedar in the Roosevelt 
neighborhood.

In the post about a Douglas fir I had sketched, I mentioned that a sketch reportage project I’ve been working on has made me aware of all the mature trees in Seattle that are being cut down. On Sunday evening I learned of another one within walking distance in the Roosevelt neighborhood. This one, a 100-year-old Deodar cedar, is being removed to accommodate a resident’s new plumbing line. Other solutions are possible so that the tree could be saved. Standing on public property, the tree is the only one on the block large enough to cast cooling shade on the sidewalk.

At 7 a.m. the next day, the cutters showed up. I couldn’t arrive until around 8:30 a.m., so I was afraid I would be too late, but the tree was still standing tall. Apparently the presence of tree activists, neighbors and other interested parties was enough to make the cutters turn away. So the cedar was saved – at least temporarily. As I sketched from across the street, placard-carrying members of Tree Action Seattle chatted with neighbors walking by to spread the word about the Deodar’s fate.

Meanwhile, the same day, the Douglas fir I had sketched last week was cut down.  

Walking home after making this sketch, it was only 9:30 a.m., but I could feel the day’s heat already climbing. It was the first day of our week of heat advisory temps in the 90s. I zigzagged across streets so that I could walk, gratefully, in the shade of trees.