Before their death, the Toomer’s Corner Oaks showered their acorns down onto Auburn’s soil.
Now those acorns have grown into seedlings and are branching out across the country, creating little patches of Auburn wherever they go.
One Auburn alumnus, Taylor Morris, who graduated from the College of Architecture, Design and Construction in 1981, decided to take it upon himself to find the trees.
Morris and his wife, who also graduated from Auburn, were gifted a seedling seven or eight years ago from some friends.
Despite living in Nashville, Tennessee, which Morris explains is a little far north of the optimal growing range for the oak, their seedling has thrived.
“This seedling was from the original trees, so we were just thrilled to get it,” Morris said. “It was just a little bitty guy, maybe 14 inches high, and now it’s about 10 feet high, so it’s done well.”
Spurred by his curiosity as to where the other trees have taken root, Morris created a Facebook page about three years ago, hoping other seedling owners would post the location of their trees.
Although Morris said the response has been modest so far, the page has started gaining more recognition lately.
“The first year there might have been like 20 or 30 people who discovered it, and then all of a sudden, over the last year, it probably doubled in size,” Morris said. “I get probably like five or 10 new likes a week.”
So far, trees from Alabama, Washington, D.C., Missouri and Tennessee have been documented on the page.
Thanks to one of Morris’ friends, U.S. Rep. Dennis Ross of Florida, a Toomer’s Oak seedling has resided on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol since 2011.
U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, who was present for the planting of the seedling, expressed his approval in a news release at the time.
“The rich traditions of Toomer’s Corner can now grow deep in the grounds of our nation’s Capitol,” Rogers said in a statement.
No stranger to the political world, a Toomer’s Corner seedling also resides in front of the governor’s mansion in Montgomery, according to Gary Keever, College of Agriculture professor who helps coordinate the seedling program.
Still, Morris said he would love to hear about more of the seedlings.
“In my mind, I have this picture of a map of America with all the trees spotted,” Morris said. “So far, it’s been a slim response, but I would love to think that over time people will discover it.”
And there are certainly more seedlings out there, ripe for the documenting.
Although he does not know the specific number, Keever said that from 2002-11, the seedlings generated some $300,000 in revenue.
“Well over about nine years, they generated close to $300,000 in revenue that was used for student scholarships,” Keever said. “I don’t know the exact number sold since it wasn’t in our department, but they initially sold them for about $60 each. And then when they became limited, they were around $100. You can do the math and get an estimate.”
That’s over 3,000 seedlings sprinkled across the U.S., and that number could soon be growing now that Toomer’s Corner is once again home to healthy, acorn-producing oaks.
“Actually I have collected acorns, and I’m germinating them as we speak,” Keever said.
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