Josha Kochis, an artist from Detroit, MI, was selected to transform the selected ash tree in Shelby Park.

Ever heard of epicormic shoots? Like many woody plants, Ash trees produce them as a stress response. This is not always obvious. They end up looking like unruly masses of leaves around the trunk or a big elbow. Lots of people think these “suckers” are ugly, and will remove the shoots as they grow. This is sometimes called “lion-tailing”. The attempt at increasing photosynthesis capacity is often seen as another example of nature’s stubborn insistence on chaos, in contrast to humanity’s need for order - especially when it comes to common landscaping practice. But what if we recognized this activity as the call for help that it really is?

            Signs of Emerald Ash Borer infestation include canopy thinning, woodpecker activity, D-shaped holes in the bark (which may also crack and split), and the infamous wandering lines like some kind of cryptic map in the vascular layer beneath the bark of the tree - all in addition to the production of suckers. Caught early enough and treated regularly, there are a handful of insecticide applications that can save an infected Ash before it reaches the tipping point. Conventional wisdom states that once a tree’s canopy is depleted past 30%, it’s very unlikely the tree will survive. At that point, there are only two options: girdling or complete removal. Girdling is a technique used to cut off the connection between a tree’s roots and canopy, essentially killing it in place. Advantages to this approach include preserving the root system to keep the area’s soil structure intact, as well as prolonging the quality of the wood itself before the entire tree rots from the inside out. Often the trees are completely removed, and if the community is fortunate enough to have an organization like the Nashville Tree Foundation around, they are sometimes replaced with other species to try and recover the loss.

Why make a sculpture out of a dying Ash tree? I’m still not sure I know the answer. I do know that this particular tree was condemned by the city to be completely removed within a year, and that a lot of people were upset about it. I know we develop personal relationships with these gentle giants, whether it’s because we pass them on our morning jog in the park or we have a particular memory associated with their presence. Maybe you’ve spent time sitting on a quilt underneath this tree’s huge footprint of shade or, like me, stood in the center of its three primary trunks and felt like you’d stepped inside some kind of secret room. Maybe you felt safe, or quiet, or old somehow.

            Ash trees have long represented wisdom and longevity. In Norse mythology and some religions, they are seen as a connection between heaven and earth. Their strong but flexible wood has been used for everything from tool handles to floorboards to car parts, ladders, posts, baseball bats and boat paddles. It is both sad and unsurprising that the downfall of this ancient species has been caused by our own carelessness. It seems we’ve let the Ash trees down after all they’ve done for us. There’s plenty of research happening to try and save what’s left of remaining populations. Sometimes a symbolic gesture in addition to the work of professionals doesn’t hurt.

Phantom Limb is my attempt at that gesture. I certainly didn’t know how to save one special Ash who lived in Shelby Park on Nashville’s east side, let alone how to stop the infestations sweeping this vast country of ours. But given the choice between knowing a really good tree for a little while longer, or watching it reduced to a stump in one day, I think I choose to spend a few more years with it. I tried to put a tree back together - more for our sake than for its own benefit. I thought that using some of its lost wood to connect the broken branches might help it stay standing that much longer. I thought maybe making the effort to spend some time getting to know its twists and angles would make it feel better. Or maybe it would just make me feel better. I hope it helps.