Wednesday, July 23, 2014

George Harrison memorial tree killed by beetles

A pine tree planted in 2004 near Griffith Observatory, Los Angeles, in memory of George Harrison is to be replanted because the original tree died as the result of a beetle infestation.

The sapling was planted, unobtrusively, near the observatory with a small plaque at the base to commemorate the former Beatle, who died in 2001, because he spent his final days in Los Angeles and because he was an avid gardener for much of his adult life.



The memorial tree in Griffith Park had grown to more than 10 feet tall, but Los Angeles Councilman Tom LaBonge said the tree beetle onslaught was too much for the tree.

Trees in Griffith Park have occasionally been the victims of bark beetles and ladybug beetles, among other tree-unfriendly creatures.

3 comments:

xoxoxoBruce said...

Politician LaBonge is a liar. Ladybugs(AKA, Ladybird, or just Lady)Beetles, are not harmful to plants. On the contrary they are voracious aphid hunters.

arbroath said...

Sadly, the world over, lying is what politicians do.

Anonymous said...

But they also mentioned bark beetles, which do kill tons of pines every year. The quote from the original article was weird, it seems like it mentioned "ladybug beetles" in context to something else as well.