This is edited from an article sent out by Cal Deal, local Community Activist, on October 16, 2012. Earlier that month, I (blue hat and shirt) had worked with the Florida Forest Service to re-measure the Rain Tree. I just want to thank Cal for all his hard work, research and dedication in preserving this great tree.
Raintree
Albizia saman
1987 City Commission resolution "protects" 127-foot-wide beauty
This is a composite of five photos — and the tree still it doesn't fit! Measuring The Rain Tree are City Forester Gene Dempsey, left, and Mark Torok, Senior Forester with the Florida Forest Service's Everglades District. More photos from this day are below.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rain Tree declared a "Florida Champion"
(biggest of its kind in the state) in 1982!
By CAL DEAL
FORT LAUDERDALE — It is an impressively beautiful tree — and it's in the way of developers!
The Rain Tree is on the south side of New River opposite the Riverwalk's historic Bryan Homes. It is massive. It's glorious crown is 127.5 feet wide, the trip around it's trunk is 19.5 feet, and it is 61 feet high. The tree might be 100 years old. It is protected from harm by a 1987 City Commission resolution, and in 1982 it was declared a "Florida Champion" by Florida Division of Forestry — meaning it was the biggest tree of its kind in the state. Because they only grow in Florida, it is likely the biggest tree of its kind in the United States.
The Rain Tree sticks up over the six-story
Esplanade parking garage and tennis courts
You may be familiar with the species — it's the same type of tree that was home to Disney's "Swiss Family Robinson." (Photo down below)
YOU HAVE TO SEE IT TO APPRECIATE
ITS DELICATELY MAJESTIC BEAUTY
It's impossible to appreciate The Rain Tree until you stand underneath its majestic, open crown. They call it a "parasol" shape, but that doesn't do it justice. Because of its size, it fills the sky with beauty ... like a massive fireworks shell exploding over your head. That's the only thing I can think of that conveys the sensation you get when you look up and see those radiating branches leading to the delicate explosions of leaves. It fills your field of view! The crown is not dense, but light and airy. It is really, really beautiful. (Photos below.)
City Commission's 1987 Rain Tree Resolution declares
"the tree shall not be removed or damaged"
The 1987 City Commission resolution declares that the tree "shall not be removed or damaged" without the City Commission's okay.
City gave former owners a
2004 Community Appearance Award
for preserving Rain Tree
In 2004, the previous owners of the property, Cabi Developers, got a Community Appearance Award from the city "for preserving and protecting a valued tree species" and thereby "contributing to the appearance of Fort Lauderdale." (Graphic from city's "Focus on Fort Lauderdale" magazine below.)
FLORIDA FOREST SERVICE'S "TALE OF THE TAPE"
RAIN TREE STANDS TALL
FOR ITS OFFICIAL MEASUREMENTS
On Aug. 15, I accompanied City Forester Gene Dempsey (blue shirt), and Mark Torok, Senior Forester with the Florida Forest Service's Everglades District, as they took official measurements of The Rain Tree. Below are some photos from that morning. Sadly, they do not come close to conveying the feeling you get when you stand under this wonderful tree and look up.
Mark is standing under the northern edge of the crown with a laser device used for measuring.
You can see the bright green spot of the beam.
Gene and Mark are dwarfed by the giant tree, which looks spectacular
when you stand close to the trunk and look up.
The crown is so big that is extends over the property line, so Gene has to stand behind
the building next door to get below its southern edge.
Mark rolls up the tape measure as he returns from his measuring journey to the trunk.
Gene is under the western edge of the canopy as Mark takes another measuring trek to the trunk.
The tree's circumference is measured at about 4.4 feet above the ground.
It's 19 feet 6 inches.
The Rain Tree is visible from the historic Bryan Homes, which you can see here on the other side of New River.
Picking out the peak of the crown.
The official measurements.
RAIN TREE "A TRULY NOBLE TROPICAL TREE"
Rain Tree is a generic name for this type of tree, now known as an Albizia saman.
Below is from Tropical & Subtropical Trees: An Encyclopedia by Margaret Barwick (2004):
A RAIN TREE STARS IN A HIT MOVIE
Here a Disney film crew uses a 250-foot-wide rain tree in Tobago for the movie "Swiss Family Robinson." According to Wikipedia, the film was the top-grossing movie of 1960, beating out other hits such as Psycho, Spartacus and Exodus. Adjusted for ticket price inflation, it took in $427 million, Wikipedia says. Filmsite.org ranks it No. 83 in the "Top 100 Films of All Time" for its domestic gross.
A seed pod from Fort Lauderdale's Rain Tree.
God has cared for these trees, saved them from drought, disease, avalanches,
and a thousand tempests and floods. But he cannot save them from fools.
— John Muir
--------------------------------
PLEASE FORWARD TO YOUR FRIENDS!
Cal Deal
1317 SE 2nd Ave.
Fort Lauderdale FL 33316
(954) 295-3726
"Always do right. This will gratify some people
and astonish the rest."
— Mark Twain
