Stumpy the Cherry Tree, often just called Stumpy, was a

Yoshino cherry tree Yoshino may refer to: * Yoshino cherry, another name for '' Prunus × yedoensis'', a flowering cherry tree * Japanese cruiser ''Yoshino'', a protected cruiser of the Imperial Japanese Navy Places * Yoshino, Nara, a town located in Yoshino Dist ...

situated along the Tidal Basin in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

The tree became popular in the 21st century due to its battered appearance which was caused by repeated flooding of the basin. The tree became waterlogged in the 20th century due to repeated tidal flooding caused by

land subsidence Subsidence is a general term for downward vertical movement of the Earth's surface, which can be caused by both natural processes and human activities. Subsidence involves little or no horizontal movement, which distinguishes it from slope mov ...

and

rising sea levels Rising may refer to: * Rising, a stage in baking - see Proofing (baking technique) *Elevation * Short for Uprising, a rebellion Film and TV * "Rising" (''Stargate Atlantis''), the series premiere of the science fiction television program ''Starga ...

. The tree only had three to four flowering branches and a hollowed-out trunk by the time it became popular. Stumpy was removed on May 24, 2024 as part of a project to repair the basin's sea wall.

History

20th century: Planting and climate change

Stumpy is descended from the 3,020 trees gifted to the United States by

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

Mayor

Yukio Ozaki was a Japanese politician of liberal signature, born in modern-day Sagamihara, Kanagawa. Ozaki served in the House of Representatives of the Japanese Diet for 63 years (1890–1953). He is still revered in Japan as the "God of constitutional pol ...

in 1912 as a symbol of Japanese-American friendship. The

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government within the United States Department of the Interior, U.S. Department of ...

estimates that Stumpy was planted in 1999; however, because it's trunk is hollowed and has no

tree rings Dendrochronology (or tree-ring dating) is the scientific method of dating tree rings (also called growth rings) to the exact year they were formed. As well as dating them, this can give data for dendroclimatology, the study of climate and atm ...

, it's difficult to know exactly how old the tree is. The fate of Stumpy was largely sealed due to the combination of

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...

and the sinking of the Tidal Basin's sea wall. Overall, land has sunk by five feet while water levels had risen by one foot. This combination had led to the land around the basin flooding twice a day at high tide. In addition to being waterlogged, the tree is also victim to sun-scalding, overgrowth of fungi, and

compacted soil In geotechnical engineering, soil compaction is the process in which stress applied to a soil causes densification as air is displaced from the pores between the soil grains. When stress is applied that causes densification due to water (or other ...

21st century: Rise to fame and removal

During the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

, a

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user posted a photo of the tree in the "r/washingtondc"

subreddit Reddit (; stylized in all lowercase as reddit) is an American social news news aggregator, aggregation, Review site#Rating site, content rating, and Internet forum, discussion website. Registered users (commonly referred to as "Redditors") subm ...

and compared Stumpy's appearance to their love life. Social media posts and accompanying traditional media increased the tree's notoriety. Posts often focused on the ability of the tree to bloom despite its condition and harsh environment.

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, a news media outlet, also compared the tree to Tiny Timber, an undersized

Christmas tree A Christmas tree is a decorated tree, usually an evergreen conifer, such as a spruce, pine or fir, or an artificial tree of similar appearance, associated with the celebration of Christmas. The custom was further developed in early modern G ...

in D.C.'s Columbia Heights Civic Plaza in 2022. After the tree's rise to fame, individuals had left flowers, art, gifts, and bottles of liquids at the base of the tree. The tree had been described by National Park Service workers as a 'folk hero', being the most asked-about tree along the Tidal Basin. Additionally, the tree had become

anthropomorphized Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics t ...

to the point that the public more often uses masculine pronouns than "it" when referring to the tree. In early 2024, it was announced by the National Park Service that Stumpy would be one of 153 cherry trees removed as part of a $113 million project to repair the Tidal Basin's sea wall. By this time, Stumpy had become too brittle and hollowed out to be successfully transplanted to a different location. Instead, in April 2024, the National Park Service and National Arboretum took clippings of Stumpy to propagate new cherry trees that are genetically the same as Stumpy. These propagations have been referred to as "baby Stumpies" and "Stumpy 2.0" by media outlets. Finally, the tree was removed on Friday, May 24, 2024.

In popular culture

* DC-based photographer and freelance ''

Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large na ...

'' writer Kevin Ambrose released a Stumpy-themed calendar in 2024. * Beginning in 2024, Stumpy was named the official mascot of the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10-Mile and 5K runs.{{Cite web , title=Meet Stumpy {{! Credit Union Cherry Blossom , url=https://www.cherryblossom.org/race-weekend/meet-stumpy/ , access-date=2024-05-06 , language=en-US

References

Individual trees in the District of Columbia Landmarks in Washington, D.C. Southwest (Washington, D.C.)