Medford's Tree of the Week

Medford's tree of the week can be found near the main entry of Oak Grove Cemetery. It's a large eastern hemlock, which is known as the most graceful of the evergreens, according to Medford Tree Warden Aggie Tuden.

"Native to Canada and the eastern United States, hemlock usually grows 40 to 70 feet in height, sometimes to over 100 feet," Tuden writes. "Hemlock’s shape is softly pyramidal, with a strong, tapering trunk and branches that become more pendulous and feathery with age."

The hemlock at Oak Grove Cemetery is not there by accident.

"Its strong central trunk and outstretched branches reflect the form and inspiration of the magnificent World War II memorial statue, “The Angel of Victory and Peace,'" Tuden writes.

The hemlock has soft needles with cones that grow high up in the tree.

Hemlocks are victimized by sucking insects known as the hemlock woolly adelgid. Infested trees often die within a few years, Tudden writes.

To read more of Medford's tree of the week go here.