The nature of the Katy prairie is to be flat and treeless. But for more than 120
years now, settlers have planted trees, and some of the earliest are still
thriving.
In the last few years we’ve seen a lot of trees die. Many of the trees TXDOT planted along I-10 have
died, we
’re told that was expected and accounted for in the installation. Some trees have
succumbed to our record-setting heat and drought. The saddest losses are the
big trees taken down for new development. Knowing the monetary and
environmental value of huge trees, I sometimes wonder if their destruction is
planned by architects who never see them. If the planners recognized the beauty
or realized how significant an area can be that is planned around one of these
giants maybe they would not condemn them to kindling.
As the Katy area grows, new subdivisions are built on mostly bald land, and
developers move fast to plant new trees.
These days, landscape architects design yards to sell the real estate and trees
are the most significant part of those plans.
The beautiful oaks in old Katy were planted with the same deliberation. Chester
Stockdick (1880-1954) was an early Katy resident. On trips into Houston he
would pick up acorns around the Rice University area, being very particular to
collect acorns from the largest and most beautiful old oaks he could find. He
wanted to have that same beauty in his own yard in Katy and often came home
with pockets full of acorns. I
’m told as he walked through Katy sometimes he would press his cane into the
ground and drop in an acorn. Thank goodness he did.
Those acorns have grown into huge oaks today, some nearing a century old and
every bit as beautiful as Chester might have imagined. Chester wasn
’t alone in the venture; every big old tree in heavily-wooded Katy was planted by
someone, and many of them were ancestors of people who are still here today.
On my street in old Katy, there are at least four yards that have oak trees
grown from acorns my own father planted about 25 years ago. Some of them are
pretty big now.
I find particular comfort in their shade and hope someone else will truly
appreciate them in the future. Other trees in our neighborhood were planted by
the original land owner in the 1950s; his children remember planting some of
them and fondly mark the decades passed by the remarkable canopy over the
streets.
Old Katy has the biggest trees, but not the only trees. One can drive through
the Katy area and identify the age of
neighborhoods by the size of their trees. West Memorial has some big trees now;
Pin Oak Village does, too. Some sections of Cinco Ranch and Falcon Point have
trees that are several decades old.
It makes a difference. Trees are beautiful and healthy. The CO2 they generate
keeps our air clean; their branches offer shelter to our local and migrating
birds. In less landscaped areas, the fallen leaves create an important
ecosystem for earthworms, mice and even snakes and insects. Some of us have
fond memories of tree climbing and playing in huge piles of leaves.
Trees are a valuable asset. The Katy Area Economic Development Council has a plan to plant more trees, and
the city of Katy now requires that trees removed for development must be
replaced with new ones. Not that a sapling can replace a century-old specimen,
but some of what we plant today will become the old trees for the generations
that follow. It has been a hard year for our foliage, but take care of the
trees and just imagine what a forest our prairie may be one day.
Katy Lifestyles and Homes Magazine features
Katy Homes, Upscale Living, Health and Well-Being,
Shopping, and Entertainment in Katy Texas.
