From left, Jac Payne with UT Knoxville, Red Bank Mayor Hollie Berry, Don McKenzie, and Kayla Stuart, student at UT Knoxville
Red Bank Mayor Hollie Berry accepted the Tennessee Champion Tree Award at the Tennessee Urban Forestry Conference, for a 94-foot-tall Virginia Pine located in the heart of Red Bank. The massive tree, which hails 35 inches in diameter, was discovered by Don McKenzie, a professional wildlife conservationist, while exploring the former Red Bank Middle School site in an effort to document the various plants and animal life that reside on the vacant 12-acre property.
The city forester with Chattanooga assisted with verifying the tree’s species, since most Virginia Pines are normally small and often called “scrub pines,” growing short and bushy. He confirmed that this large tree was indeed a Virginia Pine and was undoubtedly the biggest Virginia Pine he had ever seen. With this confirmation, Mr. McKenzie submitted the tree’s measurements to the Tennessee Champion Tree Program in the fall of 2021.
This past summer, two students from the University of Tennessee Knoxville Urban Forestry program traveled to Red Bank to examine and measure the large Virginia Pine. The duo took measurements of the tree’s diameter at breast height, the height of the tree, and the average crown spread. The measurements were entered into their standard equation, resulting in the final overall score of 218.54.
In September, Mr. McKenzie received the news that the Virginia Pine on the former Red Bank Middle School site is indeed the official State Champion Virginia Pine. The tree will remain as the reigning champion until another tree is found with a higher point value or until the tree is no longer standing. Mr. McKenzie accompanied Red Bank Mayor Hollie Berry as she accepted the State Champion Tree Award at the Awards of Excellence Ceremony at the Tennessee Urban Forestry Conference.
“Finding such an impressive champion tree anywhere, anytime is rare and exciting,” said Mr. McKenzie, “but finding it on an historic public property that is such a legacy for thousands of Red Bank citizens is priceless."
The Tennessee Champion Award winning Virginia Pine’s data has been submitted to American Forests, and by the summer of 2023, could possibly be crowned as the National Champion Award winner.
"Red Bank is a city full of natural beauty and we are especially honored to have this publicly owned champion Virginia pine recognized by the state,” said Mayor Berry. “We look forward to preserving this treasure for our community to enjoy."
The tree is located in a forested stand near the Southwest corner of the property, just off of Oakland Terrace. Mr. McKenzie and friends cleared a trail on the property leading to the tree for anyone wanting to see this truly exceptional award-winning Virginia Pine. City Manager Martin Granum assures there are no plans to disturb that stand of trees and city staff will continue to be good stewards of Red Bank’s Tennessee State Champion Virginia Pine.
Tennessee State Champion Virginia Pine Tree