The Toomer's Oaks task force has shifted focus from the soil to the trees themselves, which have begun to show their first leaves of spring.
"We've got to minimize stress on the trees," said Gary Keever, professor of horticulture and task force leader. "We've got to make sure they don't dry out."
Keever said a lift will arrive early Friday morning so the team can begin testing the leaves to determine the amount of herbicide absorbed by the trees.
"The leaves are emerging, and we'll be looking at any yellowing of that new growth," Keever said. "If the trees have taken up herbicide and moved it to the foliage, it won't take them long to begin to show some yellowing along the edges of the leaves."
The shift in focus from the soil to the trees came after test results performed in the lab of Vince Cammarata revealed the herbicide had traveled below the initial 20-inch depth.
Keever said herbicide was found at depths of four feet.
The task force removed the soil at these depths within the tree beds. Following the removal, the roots were rinsed with high-pressure hoses and the soil was replaced.
"It's an inexact science," Keever said. "So we have to gather information such as the soil samples and then try to determine what might've happened so we can come up with the most effective solution."
While the herbicide traveled farther under ground than originally thought, Keever said the substance had not traveled far beyond the oak tree beds.
Keever said he could offer no odds of the oaks' survival.
"I can tell you that we've talked with many herbicide experts around the country, and most of them have told us we've done just what we needed to do," Keever said. "But they're not optimistic. This is a very lethal substance, and we're in uncharted territory. No one's ever tried to save two trees that have been poisoned."
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