2025 comments: Overstory shade is causing branch dieback. It may have suffered damage from storms. Several dead branches were pruned while measuring. It's situated within a decent light gap of the mid-story, with its greatest threat being damage by falling debris from overstory trees. The canopy was thin from defoliation by rust disease. The trunk basal wrap of 30", which was used in the calculation of the final score, was taken at the smallest girth below the fork, which was at 1' above ground level. A composite trunk measurement of 28" was calculated using the three live stems at 4.5'. Stem 1, above all forks, was 14". Stem 2, above the lower fork, was 20". Stem 3, below the lower fork, was 14".
2024 comments: Recognized again as national champion.
2015 comments: Declared national champion in 2015. The tree is growing in a high-quality forested natural area and is completely healthy. The measurers surmise that this old specimen has been happily thriving at this site for many decades. Pre-1950s when most of Arlington County and the western half of the City of Alexandria were heavily forested, pastured, and rural, there were probably more of these around, with extant ones like this all probably surviving relics from that time. Pear hawthorn is a state-tracked S1 (critically imperiled) species. Hawthorn expert Ron Lance checked the identification. This information was also provided to State Botanist John Townsend with Virginia DCR, Division of Natural Heritage, as well as the Virginia Botanical Associates to add to the Digital Atlas of the Virginia Flora. The measurements taken by Rod Simmons and Greg Zell in 2015 were 26", 17', and 28' for a score of 50 points.
Eric Wiseman July 2025