Goodbye, Elms!

Last year I blipped this scene and its deceased residents, the Earle family. As you can see, the spot has lost its shade and a huge portion of its beauty.

Woodlands Cemetery in West Philadelphia serves as a botanical garden and a park, and I love the place, simply. These three vanished English Elm trees were part of a semicircle of seven (see others in the right side of the image), and were possibly the oldest of the species in North America. They were among a small number of elms that survived the Dutch Elm Disease epidemic that happened in the US between 1928 and the 1960s. They were planted here well before the War of Independence.

Sadly, these three giants were diagnosed with the fungus and in hopes of saving the other four they were cut, the wood removed from the site, and soon the root system will be removed as well.

These beautiful elms gave shade to all the thousands of funerals that have ended in this peaceful spot. All who love this cemetery mourn their deaths.