This is the "queen" tree, one of two white oaks at Springton Manor Farm that we visited yesterday. She's a big girl, isn't she? Very healthy, still growing. Scott estimated both trees at between 250 and 275 years of age. They're growing near a pond, so there's plenty of groundwater to keep them nourished, and being out in a field, they have no competition, so they're growing - especially sideways - at a good clip. But even here, he noticed practices that likely will eventually hurt the tree. There was a drainage ditch dug nearby, through the trees' root zone. There was a paved pathway alongside, which will prevent air and rainwater from percolating down into that zone. Yet here we were, in the most bucolic of settings. Imagine quality of life for trees stuck in those disastrous shopping center parking lots in the burbs or cemented in on all sides on a city sidewalk. Dave Johnson, regional forester for the New Jersey Forest Service, says many people today feel no connection to or particular affection for trees, nearly paving them over or cutting them down (or not replacing trees that die or fall down) in developed areas because they drop leaves and make a mess. "Trees don't have to worry about getting their roots cut for a new sidewalk in the forest," he said. Thankfully, there are also people out there like Dave and Scott - Tree Tenders come to mind - who are passionate about trees, grateful to have them and eager to plant more. In the city, where careless trucks, haphazard code enforcement and even thoughtless dog owners can render a tree's life (to say nothing of residents') a nightmare, you are reminded every day - especially during hot spells like this one - that trees are excellent citizens. Welcome on my block any day.