Thirty - five years ago , Bob Piaschyk had no theme that a quotidian delivery of some hot oak tree trees to his family - owned baby’s room outside of Dallas would establish a lifelong , dogged pursuit of a young species .
That sunny Clarence Shepard Day Jr. so many year ago , as his freight was being unloaded from the delivery truck , the sharp - eyed Piaschyk noticed three specimens that were not like the others .
These three did n’t quite look like what live oak — or any tree he was familiar with — are suppose to calculate like . As the owner of a large and reputablegarden marrow called Treeland , Piaschyk knows how various coinage are suppose to await .
These three stand out .
“ They were some sorting of crabby , ” he said . “ I was n’t sure what , but I make out they were n’t virgin live oaks . ”
A Series of Smart Moves
odd , he pulled the interloper apart . Some might have thresh the oddball specimens in the waste bin , but a natural curiosity led Piaschyk to hang on to the Tree .
For many year , he leave these botanical oddities in their container , nourish and watching them , but not quick to give them to world .
At some tip , Piaschyk and his wife , Pat , moved their develop stage business to larger ground , a 40 - acre verdant paradise in tiny Gunter , Texas , that Piaschyk fondly refers to “ the farm . ”
Here , the curious tree diagram farmer finally put his unusual specimens — two of which were standardized , while the third was different — into the land . As they matured , one of the tree — the true anomaly — morph into a showstopper .
What Is It?
But what species was this Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree ?
“ It ’s double-dyed shot . You see disposition in the bark , the ramification , and you speculate , ” says Piaschyk . “ It kind of wait like a crisscross between a hot oak and a burr oak . ”
“ The farewell , though , are more like those of a ‘ Nelly R. Stephens ’ holly , but bigger . They ’re huge and shiny , ” he adds .
The tree , he say , is tall , very broad , and “ the density is off the charts!”Lots of inner branchinggives the tree a lush , full appearing , he say .
One of his customers took the leave and acorns to a PhD at A&M , who jibe that it looked like a alive oak - burr oak tree mix .
Piaschyk has consider have the specimen ’s DNA tested , but that has n’t made its way into the budget yet .
Everyone who meet the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree at the farm bonk it , he says . “ multitude are always looking for across-the-board tree . They walk by this one and they exclaim , ‘ What is this matter ? ’ ”
So many compliments made Piaschyk inquire if he could reproduce and betray it to his client .
Over the years , he collected and planted thousands of acorn from the oddball specimen , but none develop a tree that look the same as the female parent plant .
“ About half the plant life that ensue from the acorns look like bur oaks , ” he say . “ The other one-half did n’t really look like live oaks — they looked really weird , like a young species . ”
But they did n’t look like the attractive tree that garners so many compliments at the farm , he supply .
The Clone Wars
As it became clear that acorns were n’t go to diffuse an exact mate to the unusual beauty , Piaschyk — a humble humankind who ’s quick to say he ’s by no means a scientist — work to other methods .
At the minute , he ’s got a scrap of a “ crazy system ” rig up , endeavor to rout low - hanging ramification . “ I ’ve sire several 200 - Imperial gallon buckets stacked up to reach the bottom of branches . ”
Dirt in the top bucketful providesan encourage environmentfor the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree to root and hopefully create a dead ringer .
“ I ’ve get the branch tie to kettle of fish in the bucket to keep it steady , ” he says .
And , although many expert have severalize him it ’s pointless to attempt to clone the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree from cuttings , Piaschyk is n’t one to give up easily .
In an ironic winding , he reached out to the grower from whom he ’d sourced that fatal tidy sum of live oak trees so many days ago .
This turnout exact to be reasonably successful at rooting hardwood , and so Piaschyk is prepare to take a expectant number of cutting from the big smasher and fork out them to the operation near Waco , Texas .
He ’s hoping they can successfully propagate at least 10 expert specimens .
The Next Steps
Should he get the 10 starting signal , he says , “ I ’ll leave them in container until they ’re about five old age old and start producing acorns . ”
Then he ’ll take them to the midriff of an empty flying field and plant them where they ’ll be innocent of potential pollen interference from other tree species .
As they grow , he ’ll reap the acorns , plant them , and hopefully farm a vendable intersection — a dead ringer of the original crotchet of nature .
The new species may have to be DNA tested to confirm its uniqueness and to be patented , but all the work does n’t enervate him .
He has a few very authoritative reason for all this elbow grease .
Why Go to All This Trouble?
Piaschyk knows he could have turn the tree and its propagation over to “ expert ” many age ago .
But for him , it ’s truly a labor of love . It ’s a process that he enjoys . “ I care talking to the great unwashed about Mother Nature , ” he says .
“ I do n’t want to turn my little babe over to someone else . I desire to see it through , ” he adds . “ It ’s nice to be capable to execute something . ”
Furthermore , he is n’t trying to become a Rockefeller off a new tree species . It ’s more personal .
“ I ’m blessed that my children have followed me into this business , ” the 64 - twelvemonth - sure-enough says . His adult son and daughter both influence on the farm .
“ If I can leave a bequest and security for my children and my grandchild , how marvelous would that be ? ” he asks . “ It ’s all for them . ”
Round Two?
by the way , these three specimens were the only genuine queerness he ’d find for many , many years . Recently , however , another geek land in his nursery .
“ It looks like a live oak tree , but with hopeful red leaves ! ” he enthuses .
A commercial-grade agriculturalist noticed the anomaly , and want to take the tree diagram to seek to replicate it , but Piaschyk opted to hang on to it , pucker it aside . Sound intimate ?
Ca n’t you just hear Bob Piaschyk ’s wheels change by reversal ?
We’ll Keep You Posted
What ’s well-chosen than a severely - working nurseryman discovering a unexampled metal money , successfully propagating it , marketing it , and sending his grandkids to college on the payoff ?
We ’re firmly in Bob Piaschyk ’s corner , and we ’re hop you ’re as fascinated by this potential new tree species as we are .
If you ’re ever in Gunter , Texas , block off by and check out the mystery specimen . Be sure to expect for Bob ; he ’s a really nice guy who ’ll be proud of to tell you his tale .
Inspired to tot a Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree to your yard ? We ’d wish to suggestthe Mexican white oak , a quick - raise favorite ! You ’ll be capable togrow some much - needed shadeof your very own in no time .
© require the Experts , LLC . ALL right RESERVED.See our TOSfor more details . Photos via Denise Piaschyck , Treeland Nursery . Reprinted with permit .
About
Gretchen Heber
