can now purchase patined Wye Oak leaves and Wye Oak seedlings. Proceeds from the Wye Oak leaves will be used to create the Wye Oak exhibit and pavilion.You
The Wye Oak, Maryland's State Tree, was a great symbol of our heritage for more than 450 years until it was felled by a storm on June 6, 2002. The Departments of Natural Resources and General Services have worked with the Maryland State Arts Council and the Governor’s staff to ensure the tree’s mighty legacy continues for hundreds of years to come.
Based on feedback from hundreds of Marylanders, all the remaining portions of the tree will be used and preserved in the following manner:
· Wye Oak State Park will receive two benches.
· Both branches of the State Legislature and each county will be given one piece of lumber to be utilized, as they desire. Talbot County will be crafting a county seal for their courthouse.
· The Community of Wye Mills will receive a piece suitable to fashion a community seal and the Wye Mills United Methodist Church and the Old Wye Parish, both churches in Wye Mills, are to receive lumber for crosses.
· A desk will be crafted and placed in the Governor’s office. A piece has been selected and is currently undergoing the required yearlong drying process before it can be finished.
· A balance of the lumber, limbs and twigs would be distributed to credentialed artisans to create works of art for public display. DGS, DNR and the Maryland State Arts Council are coordinating this process through a formal Request For Proposal (RFP). (Specifics regarding the RFP process are still being finalized. Details will be announced shortly.)
· All remaining portions of the tree will be made available to the public through a lottery system and offered for public sale with proceeds going for park improvements. (Specifics are being finalized)
Plans to commemorate the tree at Wye Oak State Park include:
§ Return of the bole or trunk to the park’s field with a pavilion funded by the sale of patined Wye Oak leaves.
§ Establishment of a Wye Oak exhibit in the schoolhouse on site;
§ Construction of a 3/4-mile nature trail from the park down to the Wye Mill.
§ Replanting of a clone of the original Wye Oak.
Own a piece of the Wye Oak
The public will be able to purchase Wye Oak Seedlings and patined Wye Oak leaves by going to the following websites.
Purchase patined Wye Oak Leaves or call 1-800-288-7813. Proceeds from the Wye Oak leaves will be used to create the Wye Oak exhibit and pavilion.
Purchase your very own Wye Oak Seedling. or call 1-800- TREES MD
Last updated on December 12, 2003