I wrote about the demise of the two trees at Toomer’s Corner back in March . The poisoned oaks on Auburn University’s campus were the embodiment of the university’s school spirit. But after their long battle to stay alive in the wake of poisoning by a rival football fan, the trees finally were chopped down in late April after a grand bon voyage celebration.

Now, two Auburn University professors studying growth rings on one of the trees estimate that both trees were between 83 and 85 years old.

According to an article on the Auburn campus news site, “the findings support the previously reported planting of the two oak trees in 1937” and pictures taken in the two years following that show two trees that were eight to 12 feet tall.

“Field-grown live oaks of that size would typically be eight to 10 years old,” one of the researchers, Professor of Horticulture Gary Keever, told the site.

Now the university is considering how to display wood from the oaks, while manufacturers licensed by the university are selling merchandise made from it, the paper stated, adding that royalties earned from sales will fund scholarships for Auburn students. It’s good to see that something positive is emerging from it all.

—Beth Geraci