Note: This post was written before the Thomas fire which killed one of the trees. A replacement tree was planted. Both trees appear to be struggling now. The trees are being cared for by the Rancho Venture Trust. Hikers are being asked to stay off the land until it recovers from the fires.
Perched on rolling hills like twin sentinels over the town, these trees have become an icon for the preservation of nature and open space. But the truth is that Two Trees aren’t natural at all. They are blue gum trees (eucalyptus globulus) imported from Australia. Thirteen of these trees were planted at the request of property owner Joseph Sexton in 1898. Sexton, who resided in Goleta, thought of California as a kind of empty canvas that needed to be filled with exotic plants from other countries. He is perhaps best known for introducing Evil Pampas Grass to the state.
In 1903 a brush fire destroyed eight of Sexton’s trees. This fire also set off a gas flare from a hidden natural oil deposit that killed Ralph Lloyd’s horse and touched off Ventura’s oil boom.
Five trees remained at the top of the hill until 1940 when a few Halloween pranksters hacked down three of the trees. Marcel “Slim” Sap, owner of the local Motor Mart and vigorous civic booster, replanted the three deceased trees and all was well until 1956 when football hooligans cut down one of the orginal trees and two of the replacements.
Even though Two Trees is on private land, a lot of Venturans seem to feel the landmark is part of the public trust. And others still see it as a blank canvas–to be painted with spray cans and fat black markers. Pen knives. Nails. Glass. And in one case I’d guess a hatchet was taken to the bark to carve “Blake + Lindson.”
A friend confessed to me today that she, too, tried to leave her mark on this spot. She and her best friend in high school struggled up the steep hillside dragging a trash bag containing a douglas fir and thirty pounds of soil, along with two shovels and a flashlight. In a sweaty fit of midnight skulduggery they planted the fir between the two gum trees.
And that’s the story of how Two Trees almost became Three Trees.
Previously published November 20, 2006
SEE ALSO
Day Hike: Liberty Canyon to Cheseboro Canyon
Day Hike: Mount Cleff Ridge, Wildwood Park near Thousand Oaks
Day Hike: Sisar Canyon near Ojai
Day Hike: Searching for the Lost City of Mu, Santa Monica Mountains
Day Hike: Mysterious Sphinx of Malibu Found? Santa Monica Mountains
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