Tate seeks truth about tree growing in local cemetery
Don Tate of Rockmart has become intrigued with an old tree that grows in Rose Hill Cemetery.
He said the late Betty Elrod once told him that she had heard a Camphor tree grew there. It was once believed to be the oldest in the area.
Since that time, he has made a diligent search to discover the truth about the tree and whether the story is fact or fiction.
He has visited several elected officials, including Mayor Steve Miller and even talked to Police Chief Keith Sorrells if he knew anything about the tree. According to Tate, several people have gone by and looked but no answers given.
Tate’s curiosity has created so much interest that it has become a conversation piece for people who see him.
He continues to visit the site and discovered the tree has fresh green leaves. It is covered with ivy and there are dead limbs that indicate it may be diseased.
“I have even asked a Rome arborist to come and check it out,” Tate said. “I just hope we can find out answers about its age and when it was planted in the cemetery.”
Research reveals that a Cinnamomum camphora ( commonly known as Camphor tree, Camphorwood or camphor laurel) is a large evergreen tree that grows up to 98 feet tall. The leaves have a glossy, waxy appearance and smell of camphor when crushed. In spring it produces bright green foliage with masses of small white flowers. It produces clusters of black berry- like fruit and has a pale bark that is very rough and fis- sured vertically.
Cinnamomum camphora is native to China south of the Yangtze River, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam, and has been introduced to many other countries