In 1876 a visiting seaman presented a seedling of an Australian Moreton Bay Fig tree (Ficus macrophyllia) to a local girl who planted it at 201 State Street. When the girl moved away one year later, her friend Adeline Crabb relocated the tree to the corner of Chapala and Montecito (in Santa Barbara) on land then owned by the Southern Pacific Transportation Company.. This Australian immigrant tree has grown to one of the largest Moreton Bay Fig tree in North America. The tree was officially designated as a historic landmark in 1970 and the property was deeded to the City of Santa Barbara in 1976. The tree has been placed on the California Register of Big Trees. In July 1997 the circumference of the tree at 4-1/2 feet above ground was 498 inches (41-1/2 feet). The average crown spread was 176 feet and the total height was 80 feet. Measured in November 1991, the branch spread was 167 feet with a total height of 76 feet. The trunk diameter above the buttress roots is 12.5 feet. CLICK ON A PHOTO TO ENLARGE AND TO READ THE DESCRIPTION. If you like photographs of flowers, trees, outdoor scenes, birds and animals you might want to join OutdoorPhotos email group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/OutdoorPhotos/ |