Texas Hill Country News

Is the San Saba Wedding Oak Nearing Its Final Days?

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Tony Maples Photography

 

Many have fond memories of the San Saba Wedding Oak. This tree recently sustained serious damage when one of its large limbs fell off, as reported by KWTX. Could this mark the last days of the Wedding Oak?

What is the Wedding Oak?

San Saba Wedding Oak before the damage

Photo: Facebook/ Lynelle Pfahning

Located near the town of San Saba on CR200, the Wedding Oak created the backdrops for many other special days. Even before it became a modern mecca for marriage ceremonies, natives in the area gathered around the base of this oak for their own council meetings and celebrations. The historical marker indicates that three weddings occurred on Christmas Eve beneath the oak’s limbs in 1911. Today, the Wedding Oak remains a popular spot for photographs and weddings. In fact, the Wedding Oak Winery, just 2.5 miles away takes its name from this historic tree.

Damage Done

Damaged San Saba wedding oak

Photo: Facebook/Jason Adams

Though reports of what caused the damage to the tree remain unclear, experts do know that the tree lost a limb measuring 10-feet across. This limb was not one of the smaller branches from the tree, either. The trunk measures 20-feet across. Whether this lost limb indicates the tree is fading, only time will tell. Fences directly beneath the limb broke, but no people sustained injuries from the fallen limb.

What Can Be Done?

Though damage to the Wedding Oak is not this bad, a split trunk can mean tree death.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Can anyone save this historic tree? Possibly? If experts properly removed the fallen limb and treated the wound, the tree could bounce back. But, according to Texas A&M, the tree may die if the trunk split from the damage. This severs the life line the tree has between its food-producing leaves and its water-absorbing roots. Since assessing the damage requires a professional eye, it may be difficult to determine how much longer the San Saba Wedding Oak has. Only time will tell.