Master Gardener Program
Erika Johnson, Program Coordinator
erika.d.johnson@wsu.edu
(564) 397-5738

Catalog of Trees

Oregon White Oak, Garry Oak HT10

Tree Statistics
Common Name: Oregon White Oak
Botanical Name: Quercus garryana
Trunk DBH (diameter at breast height: 56 Inches
Height: 92 feet
Spread: 91 feet
Latitude: 45.71533765946676
Longitude: –122.58523715092497
Heritage Tree ID: HT10

Tree Location
Neighborhood Association: Greater Brush Prairie
Hajo Folkerts Farm
12902 NE 87th Ave
Vancouver, WA 98662
United States
View in Google Maps

The Oregon white oak is located along the west side of NE 87th Ave, just within the property fence line of the historic farm.  The owners, Deborah K. Folkerts, Gary O. Folkerts, have enjoyed seeing Great Horned Owls in the tree, and many times, passersby stop for a few minutes to admire and appreciate this huge native oak that could live for five hundred years.  See the county website (https://clark.wa.gov/community-planning/hajo-folkerts-farm) for more of the story of the farm.

Other related information:

1. The owners are fully in support of the application.
2. This site is accessible, with care, as the ground is uneven.
3. This tree is viewable from a public street.
4. The historic property is signed on the street.

This Tree’s History

Hajo Folkerts purchased 55 acres and moved on to the property in 1905. The Folkerts Family built the Broken Gable-style barn in 1910. Lumber came from an adjacent property and was milled at the timber site. The barn is a gable-shed design with one side used for dairy and the other side used for equipment storage. The central section was and is still used for hay storage. Originally, the loose hay was lifted up from a wagon and loaded through a large door at one end of the barn and then dropped from a hay fork on a track near the roof peak.

ln 1910, part of the farm was still stump land and had to be cleared. The Folkerts had a dozen cows and grew hay and oats for the cattle, and potatoes and onions were grown as income crops. In 1932, a new house was built and a car was purchased to bring Hajo’s wife, Johanna, back as she had left the farm somewhere around 1920. The house and the car is still on the property.  During WWII (March 1944), the oldest son (Herman) returned and purchased the farm as Johanna could no longer get help to operate it. Herman and his wife (Dorothy) raised beef cattle and  lived on the farm until their deaths. When Herman retired, he transferred the property to his son and daughter-in-law, who continue to grow hay and raise beef cattle. The 55 acre farm is still intact today is currently being farmed by third and fourth generation Folkerts family members. Some of the land is leased out for farming.

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