60 + year old tree falls into river

[PinBrian]

I'm really concerned for the ones on Main Street. They've been there since opening day and have grown REALLY big when compared to their younger selves of the 50's. If one of them goes down onto the street, into a building, or worse, the high possibility of falling onto a guess, there's going to be massive discussions and all that. Possibly some new regulations or things like that.

Pretty sure those trees were all replaced at one point due to them dwarfing the buildings on main st. I think in the 80s sometime?

[WDITrent]

Don't give the Lawyers ideas.

Nets...over walkways...EVERYWHERE.

[Sarafina]

If you can't tell what's going on I'm

Here's the link to a picture from someone who was on the Mark Twain as it happened.

[swampymarsh]

This wasn't the first old tree to fall at Disneyland Park, and others have already been removed.

[Wild Ol' Dan]

Howdy Pards,

Trees and people grow old and die. I'm kinda sure it wasn't really a political statement. Nor should a tree or people be replaced by plastic, fiberglass, or cement... the sky is not falling, and we do not need to cut out every living tree in the park...

The truth is...Disneyland is growing old now. Celebrate those old trees, the way Walt did, long, long years ago. He believed that they would make the park grow more beautiful each and every year...and that now fallen 60 year old tree did just that. The mess was cleaned up very fast by the young...soon that old tree...and old people will fade into history and be forgotten. It's the nature of things I suppose...

I reckon I'm slightly older than that tree was...and I'm thankful that it made the place so beautiful all these years... The young must plant a new tree now, and, if they do, maybe the beauty Walt dreamed about once upon a time will continue...

Adios for now. Talk to ya on down the trail.

Wild Ol' Dan

[explodingboy]

Trees fall time to time , probley the rain soften the soil and washed a little away and that is all it takes. The rest of the trees are fine , replacing them is not relative in my opinion , if a tree falls it falls you can't live life in fear we risk our lives on the freeway everyday , I don't want to live in a safety bobble it takes away from the fun. These are my opinions

Bingo.

Trees fall, life moves on.

[Malina]

Don't trees generally become diseased or die before they fall, unless there's a storm that knocks them down? If that's the case maybe it's time to get a horticulturist in there to check out the rest of the trees and make sure they're okay. If one of those grand, huge trees falls on someone - or a limb does - it's going to be horrible. You can't stop every accident from ever happening but if they can weed out the diseased/dead trees now it might stop some of them.

And that's not living in a bubble - as far as I know, a lot of major parks/zoos/areas with lots of trees have these sort of checks/pruning happening.

[KellyMcG86]

Tree revolution...

I would guess that this tree must have been on the bank of the river since it fell into the river, which would lead me to believe that it likely fell due to "washing away" or erosion of the soil. I'm kind of surprised the landscapers or whoever takes care of the trees at the park didn't catch this before it happened.

Soon, we'll all be required to wear helmets before entering the park. Or like someone said, nets! Everywhere! (Sarcasm!)

I hope this doesn't lead to an overreaction such as removing the old trees...

[chesirecat]

Don't trees generally become diseased or die before they fall, unless there's a storm that knocks them down? If that's the case maybe it's time to get a horticulturist in there to check out the rest of the trees and make sure they're okay. If one of those grand, huge trees falls on someone - or a limb does - it's going to be horrible. You can't stop every accident from ever happening but if they can weed out the diseased/dead trees now it might stop some of them.

Uh . . . Disneyland is practically a botanical garden, they've got a large horticulture department, with several horticulturists, arborists . . . They've got teams that work on specific parts of the park, and they do take out trees if they are diseased. This won't, obviously, prevent all accidents.

There have been limbs falling off of trees in the past, but don't remember a tree falling over in the recent past.

Look where the tree was . . . on the slanted berm around the river. Erosion is more likely here, plus if you've got a tree growing at an angle, then gravity is working against it. Also, you have to look at the water leaks, of which there are assuredly some small leaks around the river, which could over time lead to soil erosion, root rot. Plus, when it rains, where does the water go after flowing down the embankment? If it pools, then you got the same situation as leaks around the river, too much water.

None of the trees on Main Street have this problem, and they are upright, unlike this tree which I believe was one of the ones that slants down towards the river.

[DisneyIPresume]

Wow. Thank goodness the Mark Twain or canoes were nowhere nearby. The results could have been devastating.

Here is an old article from the OC Register a couple years ago. Can you imagine? No wind. No rain. Just a diseased tree and a motorist in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Decay suspected in tree that crushed woman| - News - The Orange County Register

This happened maybe no more than 15 miles away and I am pretty sure the soil there is very similar to the soil around the ROA. So perhaps disease is part of the problem.

I hate to seem selfish but I hope they replace the tree with something impressive rather than nothing at all, or perhaps even worse a young tree only 5 feet tall with a thin trunk and maybe 5 leaves hanging from it.

[junkin jay]

I say hollow it out, Splash Mountain can use a couple more logs.

[Malina]

Uh . . . Disneyland is practically a botanical garden, they've got a large horticulture department, with several horticulturists, arborists . . . They've got teams that work on specific parts of the park, and they do take out trees if they are diseased. This won't, obviously, prevent all accidents.

There have been limbs falling off of trees in the past, but don't remember a tree falling over in the recent past.

Look where the tree was . . . on the slanted berm around the river. Erosion is more likely here, plus if you've got a tree growing at an angle, then gravity is working against it. Also, you have to look at the water leaks, of which there are assuredly some small leaks around the river, which could over time lead to soil erosion, root rot. Plus, when it rains, where does the water go after flowing down the embankment? If it pools, then you got the same situation as leaks around the river, too much water.

None of the trees on Main Street have this problem, and they are upright, unlike this tree which I believe was one of the ones that slants down towards the river.

Ah, I wasn't aware Disney had such an extensive department. I was halfway thinking "did they let this go and not do proper maintenance?"

If the tree was on the riverbank on an angle and it eroded, it's just one of those unfortunate things that happen, I guess - and it's a good thing that nobody in the area was harmed.

[chesirecat]

Ah, I wasn't aware Disney had such an extensive department. I was halfway thinking "did they let this go and not do proper maintenance?"

If the tree was on the riverbank on an angle and it eroded, it's just one of those unfortunate things that happen, I guess - and it's a good thing that nobody in the area was harmed.

They've got the guys who work on the Storybook every other night or so, and the Jungle Cruise team. Disneyland sort of is a botanical garden, they've got a special book at City Hall with names of all of the plants. It really is a massive job to keep everything looking better than 98% of home gardens. Considering that tens of million of guests visit DLR every year, there is a lot of upkeep. Plus, they are always changing out flower beds, such as the one in front of the train station.

Carsland/DCA means more plants to keep in top shape.

[chesirecat]

Here is an old article from the OC Register a couple years ago. Can you imagine? No wind. No rain. Just a diseased tree and a motorist in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Decay suspected in tree that crushed woman| - News - The Orange County Register

This happened maybe no more than 15 miles away and I am pretty sure the soil there is very similar to the soil around the ROA. So perhaps disease is part of the problem.

I hate to seem selfish but I hope they replace the tree with something impressive rather than nothing at all, or perhaps even worse a young tree only 5 feet tall with a thin trunk and maybe 5 leaves hanging from it.

The tree in the article had a sulfur conk, a clear sign of internal rot of the tree, as well as other diseases. I'm pretty sure Disney Horticulture would remove a guest area tree with such obvious signs of decay. No doubt the roots of the fallen tree are being viewed under a microscope for evidence of fungal disease, and the general appearance of the root ball will be examined to see if the tree was root bound.

Disney grows trees to various ages, but the best results are when a relatively young tree is planted and given time to grow to an adult sized tree.

[257 Mouse]

What should happen to the wood from this tree? A few ideas:

1.Make sticks for the corn dogs and candy apples.

2.Have the various cut logs carved into Disney Characters by the people who carve the Halloween pumpkins then put them on display.

3. Grind the tree to tiny slivers of wood and sell them like holy relics in the gift shops for $9.99 each. (Just like some folks do with pieces of the "True Cross.")

I'm betting Disney goes for option #3