Nominate Saratoga's Heritage Trees

Joyce Kilmer, author of the familiar poem entitled "Trees," was not the only one enamored of these glorious specimens.

As significant natural wonders, Saratoga’s most distinctive trees deserve to be admired, enjoyed and recognized.

Thus, the Saratoga City Council, with assistance from the Heritage Preservation Commission, has created a nomination and approval process for identifying heritage trees in Saratoga.

Trees that are approved will be placed on the Heritage Tree Inventory list, which will be honorary only and does not impact existing tree codes.

According to city arborist Kate Bear, "The City of Saratoga has many majestic, old trees of a variety of species. These trees provide beauty and stateliness to the city, along with all of the usual benefits provided by trees. The City does not, however, have any designated heritage trees at this time. Several applications are in process and it would be wonderful to add to these and create a list of beautiful old trees that can be honored as heritage specimens. The Heritage Tree Society of Saratoga has a website with photos including many trees that would be excellent heritage specimens. Residents are encouraged to apply for heritage status on their beautiful, large trees if they meet the criteria listed below."

The Heritage Preservation Commission is in the process of nominating outstanding trees for this recognition. If you have a tree on your property or know of a tree in Saratoga that should be nominated, please review the following information.

Heritage Tree Inventory Criteria:

• Specimen is outstanding, healthy with good structure, shows potential for long life
• Distinct because of age, size, species or location
• Historically important and/or relative to: agriculture, social, cultural, aesthetic, educational or economic aspects of the community

To nominate a tree for potential Heritage Tree Inventory:

• Print and fill out the application available on the City of Saratoga website at www.saratoga.ca.us:/hpc/forms. Please be sure to include your address if it is different than the tree location.
• Attach a photo
• Submit the form to the city - through the mail or drop it off at address on the form.

Questions? Contact Kate Bear, city arborist, at 408-868-1276 or Cindy McCormick, HPC Liaison at 408-868-1230.

Application Process:

• After the application form is received, it will be reviewed by the HPC
• Once approved by HPC, the application is sent to the city arborist for approval with a recommendation that it be added to the Heritage Tree Inventory list
• Once approved by the arborist, it is submitted to the Council for final approval to be added to the Heritage Tree Inventory list

Where Can You See the Existing List of Heritage Trees?

According to Bear, "There are currently no heritage trees listed in the city - this is why there has been a push to go forward with the process on old and stately specimen trees and to create a list."

As trees are approved, they will be added to the inventory list that will be posted on the city’s web site at www.saratoga.ca.us/hpc/heritagetrees.com.

For more information, contact HPC commissioner Alexandra Nugent at 408-867-2616, or alexandranugent@sbcglobal.net