The Monona History Club returns with a salute to some of Wisconsin's oldest living treasures: “If Trees Could Talk - Stories of Wisconsin's Famous and Historic Trees,” will be presented by world-renowned arborist, R. Bruce Allison.  His discussion will focus on noteworthy trees, both past and present, across Wisconsin. His stories open up a fascinating ecological and social history of Wisconsin and showcase the state's history through the lens of historic and champion trees. This may include the Columbus Cottonwood, which was over 26 feet around, or Kenosha's buried forest on the shores of Lake Michigan, or Aldo Leopold's “good oak,” or civil war-era trees.  R. Bruce Allison is expert at bringing a sense of place and understanding of the rich heritage of our trees and forests, as well as the steps needed to appreciate and manage natural resources wisely and respectfully.

The presenter, R Bruce Allison, is an ISA Board Certified Master Arborist, a PhD faculty member at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, and a Cooperative Researcher at the USDA Forest Products Laboratory where he invents tools to “see inside trees” for dangerous hidden defects in order to make our urban forest safer.