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Giant Trees Earn Laurels

Tribune photo by FRED BELLET

The camphor tree behind Kim and Richard Kinney's property at 40409 Otis Allen Road in Zephyrhills is among the largest of its species in the country.

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By GEOFF FOX

gfox@tampatrib.com

Published: October 18, 2008

ZEPHYRHILLS - Beau bolted toward a squirrel that wandered into his field of vision, then stood proudly on all fours as he watched the terrified rodent dart over a fence.

In moments, the 2-year-old Rhodesian ridgeback rewarded himself with a few laps of rainwater that had collected in the deep roots of a majestic camphor tree that is literally a stone's throw from the Bar-K Blacksmith Supply store run by Kimberly Kinney.

The tree's limbs seem to burst into the sky like fireworks, and its branches break through the ground and reappear several feet away. It is so big it was once recognized as the country's second-largest camphor tree by the American Forestry Association's National Register of Big Trees.

Planted in 1889, the tree has become as well-known to locals and seasonal residents as Beau is to Kinney's customers.

"It's like a tourist stop in the winter," she said. "It's been like that since the '70s. Some French-Canadians went back to their mobile home park and brought back a bunch of their friends. They all held hands in a circle around it."

An invasive species native to China and Japan, where camphor is used for oil and timber, the trees were introduced to Florida in 1875, according to the University of Florida's Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants.

About 16 miles from Kinney's tree, assistant public defender Tom Hanlon can boast of a camphor tree in Darby that is so big it was only recently surpassed as the country's largest. Hanlon was awarded a certificate from the American Forestry Association in 1992 but said he has no idea how old the tree is.

"It was on the property when I bought it," he said.

Like Kinney's camphor, Hanlon's tree sports an impressive canopy, sturdy trunk and enormous roots.

The current champion camphor tree is in Grady, Ga., said Deborah Gangloff, executive director of the American Forestry Association.

Because the association measures trees that are "nominated" for inclusion in the register, she said it is possible that the country's largest camphor tree has not yet been measured.

"We crown and dethrone trees every year the register is published, every two years," she said.

Although the local camphors aren't as large as the one in Georgia, it's not that odd that some of the nation's largest camphors are in Pasco County. Thanks to its subtropical climate, Florida is home to more "national champion trees" than any other state, Gangloff said.

Although camphors are beautiful and grow aromatic leaves, they also crowd out native trees, said Charlie Marcus, urban forestry coordinator with the state Division of Forestry in Tallahassee.

"Their berries are spread by birds and they produce prolifically," he said. "They are a fast-growing tree and make nice shade. That's why they were popular when they were first introduced."

The forestry division does not encourage people to plant camphor trees because of their invasive nature.

That doesn't prevent Kinney and others from enjoying her mammoth tree, though.

"It's an awesome climbing tree," she said, as Beau scanned for a chicken-chasing fox. "We've had 19 children up there at once. Never a broken bone."

Reporter Geoff Fox can be reached at (813) 779-4613.

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