The Franklin tree is extinct in the wild. All living trees are cultivated from descendants of specimens collected by William Bartram in Georgia in the 1700s. Last week, one was planted in Franklin.
The tree was obtained and planted in collaboration with the Franklin Garden Club, Franklin Town Council, Macon County Board of Commissioners, Winding Stair Farm and the Blue Ridge Bartram Trail Conservancy. The tree was planted in the downtown garden near the clock tower during a ceremony hosted by the Garden Club. Members of all contributing organizations present had the chance to speak on the history and importance of the species.
The Franklin tree is a small, flowering tree in the tea family that can grow 25 feet tall and 15 feet wide, according to the N.C. Extension Gardener Plant Tool Box. It produces large white flowers through summer and fall until the first frost.
Greg Mason of Winding Stair Farm said, “The Garden Club approached me last year and they were upset about having to take this giant oak tree down … we decided that it would be a great idea to introduce people to the Franklin tree and celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Bartram Trail at the same time. It’s a perfect opportunity.”
Brent Martin, executive director of the Blue Ridge Bartram Trail Conservancy, talked about how the tree came to be extinct in the wild despite growing well in the southern Appalachians. He said the tree was likely an Appalachian species at one point but was driven out of the mountains to the coast during the Ice Age and never came back.
According to the New Georgia Encyclopedia, Bartram only found the tree along a small stretch of land in Georgia in the 1760s and 1770s, but the tree had vanished by 1803. It was named for Benjamin Franklin.
Martin said the Franklin tree planted Wednesday would serve as a kind of metaphor for the work and attention required to take care of the community. Garden Club President Rhonda Tallent said the tree would require some attention for the next year as it gets established – to ensure it has plenty of water and remains unaffected by disease or parasites – but should be ready to thrive by the end of 2026.
Mason said Winding Stair has sold out of Franklin trees, but he was working on getting more available for the coming spring.