Save Dufrene's Legacy Cypress Tree in St. Charles Parish

Murray Dufrene Des Allemands, LA

In Bayou Gauche, Louisiana lies a historical 360+ year old bald cypress tree in peril of being destroyed. This tree is located on a parcel of property owned by the Dufrene family at 154 Bayou Estates South in Des Allemands, Louisiana in the Sunset Levee District.  St. Charles Parish is currently attempting to acquire a perpetual servitude as part of a levee project on this property. Our bald cypress tree has a majestic full canopy, a rare find for a tree of this age. It is one of the few trees of this magnitude that is located in an area that can be viewed and enjoyed by the public. Many families from our community have used this setting to commemorate a lifetime of special events such as weddings, graduations, family pictures, etc. This tree was registered with the Louisiana Purchase Cypress Legacy organization in 2010 because it was alive prior to the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. Currently, it is the only bald cypress in St. Charles Parish that is registered with this organization. We commend St. Charles Parish’s past and present administrations in their efforts to obtain flood protection for the residents of St. Charles Parish and are in full agreement for the need of adequate levee protection. However, this can still be done without harming the tree.  Engineering, design, and construction methods for Corps certified levees are modified routinely for public and private industry infrastructure; a 360+year old tree should receive the same consideration. At this point, the four agencies involved in determining the fate of this tree are LBLD (Lafourche Basin Levee District), St. Charles Parish Government, BKI (Burk-Kleinpeter Inc.) and GCR Inc. The LBLD board has voted to issue a letter indicating that they were for efforts to keep the tree.This majestic cypress tree is truly a Louisiana treasure and we would deeply appreciate any help in saving this tree which has stood the test of time. It is a part of history and deserves every effort for protection.

             LAKE BRUIN CYPRESS LANDMARKED IN TENSAS PARISH-- "ALIVE IN 1803" (?)

A  Lake Bruin cypress in Tenses Parish  appeared to be an unlikely candidate for Cypress Legacy landmarking.
But life long Tensas Parish resident Skip Hawkins, pictured above, believed  that this patch of cypress in the lake had never been logged and may be worth looking at. At only six feet in circumference, the tree belied its looks-- a ring count on the boring sample below revealed a tree likely between 190-220 years old. Probably about a 50- 50 chance it's a La Purchase Cypress Legacy Tree-- alive in 1803.

Here are the details:
GPS: N31 59.921 W
Circumference:  72 inches   Diameter:  22 inches   Radius: 11 inches

Boring:  4.75 inches   Rings counted: approx 103

4.75(boring)/11(radius) = 103 (rings counted)/ x

X = 238 projected rings

Based on length of boring relative to radius, location of tree, I’d project the age at 190-220 years

Tightly spaced rings mean slow growth and old age for this medium sized cypress.

 

Skip certainly knows the lay of the land in Tenses Parish and surrounding areas. His ecotourism group , Louisiana Delta Adventures (Louisianadeltaaddventures.com), has mapped out paddling trails through many of North central and northwest Louisiana's  waterways, including Lake St. John, Bayou Bartholomew,Tensas National Wildlife Refuge, Corney Bayou, and Bayou De L'outre and many more. Excellent brochures available though Louisiana Delta Adventures highlight the locations (including GPS coordinates)  of relatively accessible centuries old cypress interspersed along these waterways. The Louisiana Purchase Cypress Legacy is honored to work with Louisiana Delta Adventures to promote the appreciation and stewardship of the remarkable natural heritage of north and central Louisiana.
Currently the oldest known cypress in Tensas Parish is the easily accessible landmarked (Louisiana Bicentennial Cypress Legacy plaque) Buckhorn Refuge Cypress (N32 06.68 W091 21.940) circumference 23'5", estimated age 450-500 yearsThe largest/oldest cypress (see Blog inventory for photo)

St. Tammany Parish Giant Landmarked in Brockham Bayou

Jessica Gauley  of HoneyIslandKayakTours.com poses nest to one of the Honey Island (Pearl River) swamp's venerable denizens in Brockham Bayou near Slidell La -- a highlight of her kayak tours. She had always wondered how old this tree might be, and I was happy to find that it is indeed a venerable member of the many centuries old cypress still thriving in the Pearl River Basin-- around 400 years old based on rings counted from a boring sample. This one is quite accessible,  visited either on on of Jessica's kayak tours, or on your own. 

GPS: N30 21.786 W089 44.371

Circumference: 16' 3" Diameter: 4' 4" Radius: 2' 4"

Coring: 3.36 inches  Rings counted: approx: 72

The arithmetic to determine estimated age:

3.36/26 (coring/radius) = 72/x

x= 557 estimated total rings

Based on a likely faster growing rate at the beginning of its life, I'd put its age at 400+ years
Landmarked with Plaque #49-- "Alive in 1803"  (Likely around 200 years old at time of La. Purchase)

Another Ancient Cypress Landmarked in Livingston Parish

King George Bayou in Livingston Parish holds a treasure-trove of beautiful old cypress. I was fortunate to have been contacted by Keith Hemsteter, a former (now part-time) employee of La Wildlife and Fisheries who had recently signposted  cypress tupelo habitat recently added to the Maurepas Swamp Wildlife Management Area along King George Bayou. He came across a giant cypress he thought would be a good candidate for the Louisiana Purchase Cypress Legacy. No doubt about this one! It has been awarded LPCL plaque #45.

Circumference: 21 feet (above the buttress)

Diameter: 6 feet 8 inches  Radius: 3 feet 4 inches

1st Boring: 5.37 inches   Rings counted: approx. 200

2nd Boring  3 inches       Rings counted: approx..144

Projected age: 1100+ years

Many thanks to Keith for discovering what at this point is the oldest known cypress in Livingston Parish and among the oldest in Louisiana!

Keith Hemsteter at the site of 1100+ year old cypress

Location on King George Bayou (which enters the Amite River) west of French Settlement

 A two inch section of one of the two borings taken. Rings shown here are farther apart than in other sections

Old growth cypress is plentiful along King George Bayou--much of it now in the expanded Maurepas Swamp Wildlife Management Area

Estimated Ages of Bayou Barbary Trees Determined

Livingston Parish is yielding a bountiful yield of old growth cypress. 

Bayou Barbary has at least a dozen centuries old cypress scattered along its banks. Two representative examples are shown below, Upcoming blog entries will feature a magnificent very old cypress on King George Bayou which, like Barbary Bayou, is a tributary of the Amite River. We'll also be featuring a recently landmarked cypress on Abe Hoover Road in Livingston Parish

Bayou Barbary , Livingston Parish   N30°20.244 W090°40.605 (visible from Pete's landing)

Circumference : approx 16 ft, 1 inch    Diameter:  approx. 5 ft, 1 inch   Radius: approx. 30.5 inches

First  Boring (3/1/17) : 4.5 inches—Approx. 126 rings counted    4.5/30.5=126/ 854 projected rings

Second Boring:              4 inches—Approx. 115 rings counted     4/30.5=125/ 779 projected rings

                        PROJECTED AGE: 600+ years         LPCL Plaque #47  “Alive in 1803”

Bayou Barbary, Livingston Parish,  N30°20.184 W090°40.605

Circumference:  approx 15 ft.3inches,  Diameter: approx. 57 inches, Radius approx 28.5 inches

First Boring (3/1/17) 3 inches—approx,  80 rings counted    3/23.5=80/626 projected rings

Second Boring            4,75 inches- approx 98 rings counted   4.75/23.5=98/484 projected rings

PROJECTED AGE: 400+ YEARS

Centuries Old Cypress Landmarked on Bayou Barbary,  Livingston Parish

On Christmas Eve, 2016, the Louisiana Purchase Cypress Legacy landmarked with Plaque 47 a beautiful old cypress near Pete's Landing on Bayou Barbary in Livingston Parish. Although we have not yet cored the tree to determine its apporximate age, the circumference of this tree (photo below) indicates this cypress is was almost certainly "Alive in 1803" as the Plaque states, based on past  borings of similarly sized trees.

Location of this tree is seen in the map above

Bayou Barbary, a tributary of the Amite River contains many old growth cypress worthy of preservation.
We'll have updates on the age of the landmarked tree shown above and of other trees on Bayou Barbary (such as the one seen in the photo below) in a future posting.

If you know of any cypress in Louisiana that you may think were "Alive in 1803" and qualify as a Louisiana Purchase Legacy tree please let us know at LaPurchaseCypresslegacy@gmail.com In the upcoming year we hope to continue our quest to find the largest/oldest cypress in each Parish and add it to our registry.
To those who contacted us regarding landmarking  old growth cypress on their property --or have given us leads on where to find the big ones-- many thanks. We hope 2017 will bring us more appreciation and stewardship of Louisiana's unheralded natural treasures-- our old growth cypress.