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This is, from what we have been told and looks accurate from photos online, a Cedrus deodara, the Deodar cedar aka Himalayan cedar. As homeowners since 2013, on a house built in 1928, we don't have any verifiable history. Once, about a year into o...

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Canopy Story

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Location: Eastmoreland Author: Marc W.

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This is, from what we have been told and looks accurate from photos online, a Cedrus deodara, the Deodar cedar aka Himalayan cedar.

As homeowners since 2013, on a house built in 1928, we don't have any verifiable history. Once, about a year into owning a home a woman with her elderly father or grandfather drove by and he commented he grew up in the house and remembers when the tree was a 6-foot tall. I invited them in to talk, but they just wanted to drive by.

This is a messy tree. It drops needles almost year-round in large quantities. Also, the female cones are dense and large, quite lovely when they open a little. The male cones, size of a banana slug, are prolific at dropping yellow pollen. Also, every few years they drop at such a rate the entire area underneath is covered - literally not an inch on the ground left uncovered. Fortunately (sarcasm) this is during Nov when it is wet which makes it near impossible to use a blower. I have had to employ a snow shovel. It does provide great shade and homes to many animals.

Do not curse the tree. It does not like it and has on 2 occasions dropped a small branch on my head within a minute of me expressing disdain over cleaning up after it (I'm not kidding). Fortunately, both were less than a thumb width; you can see a hole in my neighbor’s hedge from a small/med branch dropping on it 10 years ago. I can only imagine what that hedge said...

The owners before the folks we bought from, Mike, used to build a lighted Christmas tree structure against the tree - which several neighbors have expressed fond memories of. We hang a huge plastic blow mold Santa on the tree you can see all the way up Malden in the hopes of installing some fond memories for the folks currently living nearby (not to mention the Halloween madness we employ the tree into).

In 2017 when we had significant snowfall we lost 4 small/medium limbs which fell with amazing accuracy missing the house, the power and cable lines and both cars - ok one tiny branch end (6-foot-long) did put a 2-inch dent on my wife's car hood. The other sm/md branches were so big I needed neighbors to help me move them out of the street. I can't even imagine if one of the large branches ever fell.


If for some reason the tree ever dies, I hope to hire an artist to carve a statue in the remnants of the significant trunk - as it is very tall and wide - enough to render a statue of me riding on the back of a grizzly bear and holding a bald eagle in my hand as I point knowingly to a secret. All while wearing a fancy hat. (FYI being funny for those who have no sense of humor).

This stretch along the creek is filled with amazing, enormous trees. They cast a wonderful shade in the summer, and the undergrowth rattles with creatures. These trees, especially this oak with its tremendously large leaves, are friends to everyone w...

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Canopy Story

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Location: Historic_milwaukie Author: Wendy W.

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This stretch along the creek is filled with amazing, enormous trees. They cast a wonderful shade in the summer, and the undergrowth rattles with creatures. These trees, especially this oak with its tremendously large leaves, are friends to everyone who passes by.

This maple tree produces tons of maple flyers every year. The squirrels ignore them until late in the winter, and then gather them up to eat. This tree is always full of life! A few days ago, I saw a beautiful red-tailed hawk land in this tree. It pr...

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Canopy Story

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Location: Hector_campbell Author: Wendy W.

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This maple tree produces tons of maple flyers every year. The squirrels ignore them until late in the winter, and then gather them up to eat. This tree is always full of life! A few days ago, I saw a beautiful red-tailed hawk land in this tree. It preened itself, sat a minute, and then flew away.

This weathered old grand fir is in our backyard. It's struggling along, a little unhappy about being sandwiched between houses and sheds and away from any other forest canopy. The branches are thin, and it's frankly not what most people would call an...

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Location: Island_station Author: Kathy H.

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This weathered old grand fir is in our backyard. It's struggling along, a little unhappy about being sandwiched between houses and sheds and away from any other forest canopy. The branches are thin, and it's frankly not what most people would call and attractive tree. Birds are of an entirely different opinion. Chickadees and bushtits regularly spend time here, foraging for insects in the branches. The crows and various raptors enjoy the view from up top. Hummingbirds perch at the tips of twigs. And in the spring and early summer, the tree comes alive with warblers and tanagers, tiny bits of gold that flash like glitter in the deep shadows of those long bright days. It's a valuable source of food and shelter for our feathered friends, and we try to honor it with the best care we can.

This is my "air conditioner" tree. It covers the majority of my house and keeps the house cool in the summer. I'm not sure when it was planted, but my house was built around 1896, and I'm guessing it's been around since that time. The top was lopp...

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Location: Buckman Author: Laura R.

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This is my "air conditioner" tree. It covers the majority of my house and keeps the house cool in the summer. I'm not sure when it was planted, but my house was built around 1896, and I'm guessing it's been around since that time. The top was lopped off at some point (1930's?), as were a number of trees in this neighborhood according to the arborist I had do some trimming on it a few years ago. The tree kept growing and now has two tops. It's very close to the foundation, but I'd hate to lose it.

This is a great tree. I love this tree. Overlooks the quad in front of Fields/Shoenfeldt Halls. 10/10 would look at this tree again.

This is a Norway Maple. Home to squirrels, and also nurturing many birds, this lovely tree once had a hole in it's side, but actually filled in all by itself over the years. Just weeks after we bought our house, I met the 8 year old from next door wh...

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Location: Hazelwood Author: Kat M.

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This is a Norway Maple. Home to squirrels, and also nurturing many birds, this lovely tree once had a hole in it's side, but actually filled in all by itself over the years. Just weeks after we bought our house, I met the 8 year old from next door when he asked to take a picture in front of it with his friend.

This tree is beautiful in any season. Even covered in ice, it is a work of art.

My parents bought their house in 1960, and I was born in 1964. They planted this oak tree next to the house in my honor when I was born. I remember as a kid being able to reach my hands around the trunk and touch my fingertips together on the other s...

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Location: Eastmoreland Author: Joe D.

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My parents bought their house in 1960, and I was born in 1964. They planted this oak tree next to the house in my honor when I was born. I remember as a kid being able to reach my hands around the trunk and touch my fingertips together on the other side. Now it is massive and towers majestically over the house and driveway, and produces big plump acorns every year!

I used to work close to this little green space, which is next to the walking path running next to I-84. I always admired the huge oak tree near the center, and one year decided to collect some acorns from it and see it I could start my own sapling....

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Location: Gresham_wilkes_east Author: Lora M.

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I used to work close to this little green space, which is next to the walking path running next to I-84. I always admired the huge oak tree near the center, and one year decided to collect some acorns from it and see it I could start my own sapling. Out of about 25 acorns that germinated, I ended up with two that survived. That was two years ago, and I only hope I can find a place to plant it that it will grow as beautifully as the parent tree.

This tree is in the front yard of my childhood home. I have wonderful memories of raking the leaves as a child. It was something we looked forward to every fall because my father would make it fun. We'd play duck duck goose in the blanket of giant go...

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Location: Mt_tabor Author: Marilyn K.

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This tree is in the front yard of my childhood home. I have wonderful memories of raking the leaves as a child. It was something we looked forward to every fall because my father would make it fun. We'd play duck duck goose in the blanket of giant golden leaves. Rake them into piles and bury ourselves in them. The chore took much longer than necessary but a good time was had by all. This was in the 1960's.

My great grandparents planted this chestnut and two more at the house next door, which was also owned by family. The other two are gone but I'm happy to see the one is still there.

I was in about 3rd grade and was walking home from school one day. A deluge struck so I hunkered under this tree for a good 20 minutes while it passed. The fact that the branches were able to catch and divert most of the water was a wonder to me at...

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Location: Laurelhurst Author: Marilyn K.

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I was in about 3rd grade and was walking home from school one day. A deluge struck so I hunkered under this tree for a good 20 minutes while it passed. The fact that the branches were able to catch and divert most of the water was a wonder to me at that age. I was very thankful for it. That was in the 1960's.

This Beech tree was already a giant when I was a child. My great grandparents planted it in the early part of the last century. They lived in a grand house on the property. The estate was called Green Gables and occupied most of the city block. The h...

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Location: North_tabor Author: Marilyn K.

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This Beech tree was already a giant when I was a child. My great grandparents planted it in the early part of the last century. They lived in a grand house on the property. The estate was called Green Gables and occupied most of the city block. The house was demolished in the 1960's and replaced with a parking lot. But the tree remains.

Since I grew up just a few blocks away I was able to visit the tree often. It's a fantastic tree to climb. Many kids in the neighborhood would gather there and loved climbing the tree.

I'm not sure when it started, but by the time I was in about 5th grade the tree had taken on a nickname - The Love Tree. It's soft bark was ideal for carving and many initials and even phrases were carved in the tree. I carved the tree several times myself. My initials + whatever lucky guy I had a crush on at the time. The tree became covered in carvings.

Even after moving from the area I sometimes take the long way home to drive through the old neighborhood. I always drive by the tree. Yep! Still there.

This is actually a pair of Blue Spruces that grow on the south side of our house on a rise at the east end of a small pond. In another setting they might be more notable, but here they are between a large Deodar Cedar (187) and a tall Weeping Birch...

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Location: Hillsdale Author: John B.

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This is actually a pair of Blue Spruces that grow on the south side of our house on a rise at the east end of a small pond. In another setting they might be more notable, but here they are between a large Deodar Cedar (187) and a tall Weeping Birch (6717) and just become part of the larger group. They help keep the southern part of our yard shaded in the summer and their dark color makes a great backdrop each spring for the white blossoms on the dogwood in our front yard. This past Summer I watched Crows harass a Barred Owl in the northern of the pair. The Spruces are the center trees in the attached photo, between the Cedar on the left and the Weeping Birch behind and to the right of them.

The Deodar Cedar (187 on the survey) in the southeast corner of our yard is the biggest tree on our property. It has lost some branches over the years and gets pruned by the utility companies to protect the power and phone lines along Dosch Road, bu...

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Canopy Story

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Location: Hillsdale Author: John B.

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The Deodar Cedar (187 on the survey) in the southeast corner of our yard is the biggest tree on our property. It has lost some branches over the years and gets pruned by the utility companies to protect the power and phone lines along Dosch Road, but seems to be very healthy and continues to produce lots of cones and new growth. Being in the corner of the lot with hedges under two sides, it defines a small low-traffic area that really doesn't get visited much. It's shade creates a microclimate area with holly and trillium and ferns and azaleas and rhododendrons growing under it. I only learned recently that this tree is native to the western Himalaya region and not a Pacific Northwest native. Its a landmark for anyone going up or down Dosch Road. In the attached photo its on the left margin, with Spruces (147) and Weeping Birch (6717) in the middle of the picture beyond the house.

This big Silver Maple (115 on the survey) is the centerpiece of our yard. It can be seen from all of the neighbors' yards and shades our back yard and house from west sun. It has had rope and tire swings hung from it when our kids were young, and p...

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Canopy Story

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Location: Hillsdale Author: John B.

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This big Silver Maple (115 on the survey) is the centerpiece of our yard. It can be seen from all of the neighbors' yards and shades our back yard and house from west sun. It has had rope and tire swings hung from it when our kids were young, and probably will again soon now that grandchildren are appearing. It was a big tree when we moved in over thirty years ago, but has continued to grow and spread. It has a large hollow in one of the trunks that has been a home to birds, squirrels, racoons and honeybees over the years. We've been told that we shouldn't expect it to live a whole lot longer, but we've had arborists prune and feed it and hope that we can keep it healthy as long as possible. We've planted an Oregon White Oak under it to grow up and take its place in the hopefully distant future.

Port Orferd Cedar: I have known this tree and watched it grow for 40 years and have discovered that it is a natural cover for birds, especially those that overwinter in and around my yard. It is an important ecological feature as well as impressive...

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Canopy Story

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Location: Hayhurst Author: Bill B.

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Port Orferd Cedar: I have known this tree and watched it grow for 40 years and have discovered that it is a natural cover for birds, especially those that overwinter in and around my yard. It is an important ecological feature as well as impressive.

I'm pretty sure this green dot is on the weeping birch tree on the south edge of our property. It forms a beautiful south border to the central part of our yard and provides nicely filtered sunlight into the coolest part of our yard on hot days. it...

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Canopy Story

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Location: Bridlemile Author: John B.

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I'm pretty sure this green dot is on the weeping birch tree on the south edge of our property. It forms a beautiful south border to the central part of our yard and provides nicely filtered sunlight into the coolest part of our yard on hot days. it is equally attractive when viewed from our neighbors' yards to the south and I actually expect that they would miss it more than us if it went away, since we see it mainly when we are outside and not so much from inside the house. We've been told by arborists that it is unusual for a weeping birch to get this big - that they are vulnerable to disease. We've been in this house for over 30 years and this was a mature tree when we arrived.

If this is the tree I think it is, it's located in front of the library at PSU. I was a student and/or an employee at Portland State for many years -- and always loved this tree -- even before the built the Millar Library.

This is one of my favorite trees -- actually, it's a clump of trees that have grown together, a clump of big leaf maple trees. It's a wonderful place to rest when walking/running the fitness trail that goes around the edge of the golf course at Glend...

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Canopy Story

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Location: Hazelwood Author: Linda R.

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This is one of my favorite trees -- actually, it's a clump of trees that have grown together, a clump of big leaf maple trees. It's a wonderful place to rest when walking/running the fitness trail that goes around the edge of the golf course at Glendoveer (owned by Metro).

This appears to be the tallest of the many mature trees in the wooded area of Gateway Green, a new park under development on land located between the I-205 and I-84 interstate highways. The property has MANY trees that are at least 100 ft tall.