Angel Oak Update Fall 2016

Ecological Study

Our work with the Angel Oak is moving along at a steady pace. Most recently we received the results of Dr. Joel Gramling’s ecological survey of the Angel Oak Preserve. The report catalogued the flora and fauna found on the property, recreational opportunities and options, a land use history and general recommendations for site maintenance. The Land Trust is pleased to have a thorough report and will begin working on paralleling these results with our ongoing cultural survey. We will have more information this spring for continued membership engagement with the next phase.

In the report summary, Dr. Gramling states:

It is also telling that this site is not unique, the namesake tree aside. That is not to discount the importance of what we can learn from the site; rather it is the starting point for looking at the Angel Oak Tract not as a singular preserve, but as an example of the local ecology and how it has been shaped by man. The fact that this rather ordinary site contains a hallmark tree that is so extraordinary may seem ironic, but it could function as a beacon to draw in visitors to hear the story of this land and the people that have shaped it. In this report we will brie y recount the history of this specific site and discuss it
 in the greater context of the South Carolina Lowcountry as a whole.