Two days before the likely first tropical storm to hit this area in 84 years barrels down in Pasadena, Nicole Cavender and Shadi Shihab knew one thing: they were ready. They will be on call this weekend, ready to protect the nearly 1,000 tree species that belong to one vital part of the Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens in San Marino.
“We’re confident we’ve done all we can, knowing all the work we’ve been doing,” said Cavender, who is director of The Huntington’s botanical gardens.
That conviction comes from going over the work done since The Huntington’s historic tree canopy was battered by the windstorms of 2011 and severe droughts that punctuated the 2000s.
Shihab, the garden’s superintendent, said they lost 60 trees from the torrential rains and heavy winds that battered Southern California this winter and spring alone.
More than a dozen powerful storms unleashed rain in excess of 40 inches, which contributed to the loss of 35 trees, including 11 mature Coast Live Oaks, some of which were standing before Henry and Arabella bought the grounds more than 100 years ago.
The loss of these storied giants was significant, according to Keisha Raines, communications associate at The Huntington.
That’s the clarion call behind HARP, or Huntington Arboreal Recovery Project, a campaign to raise $50,000 by Sept. 6. The money will be used to replace fallen trees, manage mature trees and maintain the native and rare, non-native trees in the collection.
The Diane and Ron Miller Charitable Fund will match every gift up to $10,000.
“Every tree needs a champion, every tree needs to be cared for,” Cavender said.
Tree-tending never ends for the Huntington team, which documents, lists and maps every tree in their collection.
“Everywhere you see trees, we’re working on it,” Shihab said. He keeps a photo catalog of beloved trees of The Huntington on his phone, like a proud parent.
Unfortunately, he also has photos of work…
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