Homewood resident Dave Shepard has spent decades exploring the suburban forests, finding State Champion trees and discovering what could be a relic of an ancient landscape.
Dave Shepard, of Homewood, uses a laser guide to measure the height of a black maple tree in Messenger Woods in Homer Glen in July, 2020. The tree was certified this year as a State Champion as one of the largest of its kind in Illinois.
Much smaller, but still large enough to be a state Big Tree Champion, Shepard identified an inland serviceberry tree on the South Suburban College campus that’s 34-feet tall. The convergence of historical landscapes in the Chicago area, particularly in the south suburbs, also gives every outing the potential for discoveries, Shepard said.
Shepard hasn’t been able to find that tree, but he thinks it could be an outlier, a relict from environmental conditions that existed long ago, as sourwood trees occur naturally in Illinois only at the state’s southern tip. Otherwise, it’s mostly native to the East Coast and Appalachian Mountains regions.The official assumption, Shepard said, is the sourwood was planted by someone years ago, but until he finds it and can investigate what trees are growing nearby, he’s not convinced.
He collected specimens and put them on file at the Field Museum and proclaimed his discovery to the Chicago botany community. His research indicates the species not only aren’t invasive, they could predate many of the surrounding, native species of white oak and hickory.
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