The Last Living Tree Planted by Johnny Appleseed

TREE TALK with BRIAN RILEY

Originally published in Tree Talk with Brian Riley, Tree Farm Chair via the Ohio Division of Forestry & Area

Situated on a lonesome county road in rural northwest Ashland County, just outside the quaint, little town of Savannah, is a picturesque 19' century farmhouse. In front of this farmhouse lives an ancient, decrepit apple tree (Males pumila) that has been weathered down to nothing more than a large stump with sprouts emerging in every-which-direction. This rather unassuming tree, no more than 20 feet tall, would command little attention or reverence had it not been for the individual who planted it there more than 160 years ago, an Ohioan by the name of John Chapman, otherwise known as Johnny Appleseed.

As if having been planted by a seemingly mythical figure in American history is not significant enough, being nearly immortal certainly is. Based on expert observations and reports, apple trees generally live up to 35 years before finally succumbing to their mortality. With some elementary arithmetic, one can easily infer that this tree has already lived more than four-and-a-half times its maximum life expectancy. To put this achievement into perspective, consider that studies from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show the average person born in the United States today will live nearly 78 years. According to this statistic, in order to match the astonishing longevity feat of Chapman's last known apple tree, one would have to live to the ripe old age of 350! Then again, I guess this feat would be possible after all — in dog years that is.

Perhaps the most logical question that arises is how can one be certain that, in fact, the legendary John Chapman planted this tree? The answer to this query can be Found in the Ashland County archives, which show that Chapman, while traveling to Indiana and Illinois from his Mansfield farm, often visited his sister, Elizabeth, who lived near Savannah. While passing by, Chapman slept in a small outbuilding at the nearby Harvey Farm, which was established in 1837 from a land grant signed several years prior by then President John Quincy Adams. Wanting to be ever closer to nature, Chapman refused to sleep indoors. In gratitude for the humble dwelling quarters Mr. Harvey regularly provided him, Chapman established an apple orchard on the farm. Call it a miracle or simply luck, but for whatever reason, one relict of this orchard survives to this day.

One might assume that an apple tree at the minimum age of 161 would not be in very good condition or long for this world. This assumption would be correct, as I accidentally found out for myself on the evening of September 16, 2003. On this occasion, I was making my way towards Savannah to re-measure what was then the reigning State Champion butternut, when I suddenly noticed what appeared to be the same apple tree that I had read about and seen in one of my favorite books, America's Famous 6- Historic Trees by Jeff Meyer. Upon catching a glimpse of this sprouty stump, I instinctively made a U-turn and backtracked in order to verify what I thought I had seen. Knowing that I was in the area, but not sure exactly where to start looking to find it, Lady (Dumb) Luck showed up once again and steered me directly to the tree. While asking permission to pay homage to the sorry-looking thing, it was obvious that Richard Algeo, the current proprietor, had gone through this routine hundreds of times before with other famous tree aficionados. Mr. Algeo, whose great-great-great grandfather Harvey invited Chapman to stay at their farm in the 1830s and 1840s, kindly allowed me to take as many pictures as I wanted of the last known survivor. He even parted with me a few of the 'Rambo' apples which Chapman favored above all other heirloom varieties.

This tree is the last known apple tree planted by John Chapman, aka 'Johnny Appleseed" nearly 150 years ago. Picture taken by Brian Riley 9-16-03.

Despite still bearing its share of delicious fruit, after more than 16 decades of wear and tear, this tree barely clings to life. To delay the inevitable, extreme measures have been taken to uphold all that remains of this frail tree. For the past 15 years, a complex network of steel chain wrapped around its decayed trunk, linked to and held fast by two steel posts, is all that has been supporting this living fossil. Without question, this measure is a desperate attempt to prevent the trunk from snapping off at the base and taking with it the final vestige of life from a tree that has stood for so much for so long.

There assuredly will come a day, probably not too far from now, when this tree will finally succumb to the natural elements it has defied for so long. But do not think that its demise will bring about the end of Chapman's last stand. Upon learning the authenticity of this tree in 1994, American Forests, the nation's oldest nonprofit citizen conservation organization, collected scion-wood cuttings from Johnny's last known surviving tree and began propagating it in their Historic Tree Nursery in Tennessee. These cuttings yielded around 50 successful first-generation budded grafts, and from this first batch, American Forests continues cloning what has become popularly known as the Johnny Appleseed Tree. These genetic duplicates, a continuation of the historic parent, are then sold across the country and throughout the world in order to help sustain this noble conservation crusade. As of 2001, American Forests had produced over 10,000 clones of this historic tree just to keep up with demand. A few of these clones were planted around Chapman's gravesite within the aptly named Johnny Appleseed Park in Fort Wayne, Indiana. To this day, the Johnny Appleseed Tree remains one of the most popular and best-selling historic trees offered by American Forests.

At the age of 70, John Chapman died from pneumonia in Fort Wayne in 1845 (reportedly 1847 by a few accounts). While an air of uncertainty surrounds the exact year of his death, one thing that is certain is that Chapman's orchards, much like his legacy, will live on. In the nearly two centuries that have lapsed since planting his final apple seed, Chapman has received many well-deserved honors and recognitions, including the creation of a museum in his name at Urbana University, which he helped establish. Furthermore, for his many contributions to early conservation in Ohio, Chapman was inducted as a charter member of ODNR's prestigious Ohio Conservation Hall of Fame in 1966. No doubt that Chapman, the indefatigable tree planter admired by millions, would be proud of our nation's Tree Farmers and the ongoing work being done by foresters everywhere to continue his legacy of 'wise use and protection.' For more information on the Johnny Appleseed Tree, or to purchase a living clone of this historic piece of Americana, go to www.historictrees.org or call (800) 320-8733.

Please let your readers know the Johnny Appleseed trees are currently out of stock and we are only taking reservations for the tree. New saplings are scheduled to arrive in our nursery in winter 2009 and be available for shipping in late spring 2009. The trees are limited and we encourage anyone who is interested to let us know now so we can reserve their tree for the spring. Your readers can reserve their tree by mailing me at jrankin@amfOnorg.