B H G . C O M

Last Halloween, we had a nor’easter sweep through New England that took down a huge tree in our yard. Approximately 80×80 feet, the tree was a rarity on Cape Cod, where early settlers cleared the land centuries ago and big storms now come through with increasing regularity. Our silver maple even made the front page of the local paper along with our neighbor’s 250-year-old Siberian elm that split in the same microburst. It’s painful for us and our neighbors to lose these grand beings, but as with most things beyond my control, I’m trying to manage my disappointment by looking on the bright side. Luckily for both our neighbor and us, the trees did not damage our houses. Our tree, which we think was planted in the early 1930s, was already a worry to me. My friend Susan, who really knows trees, gave me a warning when she visited: “Silver maples don’t live that long, and they’re notoriously shallow-rooted.” Ours came down gracefully, falling beside the house and into the backyard, her outer branches lightly resting on the gutters without making even a dent. The only things destroyed were inexpensive Adirondack chairs. “You dodged a bullet,” people commented on Instagram when I posted a photo of the damage. Others remarked that at 90-plus years old, our tree would become diseased at some point soon and need to be removed, likely drawing the ire of the surrounding community. Like the Lorax, most people love trees.

For now, the tree is lying peacefully in the yard waiting to be cut up and removed by a local woodworker who wants to create furniture out of it (we’ll get a credit for a table). But destruction can lead to rebirth, so our plan is to use the now sunny space for a kitchen garden. Though I know I’ll miss the shade of that grand tree during the heat of summer, I’m going to enjoy sampling homegrown tomatoes (while having an intact home in which to eat them).

The fi rst job at hand is to fi nd a spot well away from the house to put in a replacement specimen tree. Planting a tree is a living symbol of optimism, so I’m looking for something that will grow fairly quickly, have a sturdy root system to weather the storms, support local wildlife, and provide a few seasons of interest with fl owers or fall color. All suggestions are welcome! STEPHEN ORR, Editor in Chief instagram @steporr

FORCE MAJ EU RE

I T ’ S O U R B I R T H DAY !

BH&G is 100 this year! We’ve been helping families make their homes and lives better— introducing ideas like the family room and backyard BBQ—since our first issue in 1922. (Fun fact: We were originally called Fruit, Garden and Home.) Throughout this year, look for stories celebrating our milestone, culminating in a special September issue.