ShawneeDispatch.com

The Hanson family has enjoyed the large maple trees in the front yard of their western Shawnee home for several years.

"Since we're out in the country and have two young kids, we're outside all the time," Debbie Hanson said. "And we've always climbed all over these trees, which we knew were silver maples."

But little did Debbie and husband, Dave, know that one of the trees may be the largest of its kind in the state.

A state official will come to their home Tuesday to measure the two silver maples on their property, as well as one on their neighbor's property, to see if any of the trees qualify to become the new State Champion Tree, making it the largest of its kind in Kansas.

When the Hansons first moved to their home nine years ago, there were three silver maples on their property, each maybe 75 to 100 years old, situated along the creek that cuts across their front yard. But Debbie said a large storm somehow managed to blow one down shortly thereafter.

"That's when we realized how big these trees are," she said. "One of the most amazing things is their root system. Some of their roots are as wide around as a normal tree's trunk."

But the Hansons didn't think there might be anything special about their trees until they had their carpeting replaced not long ago by De Soto business Gully's Carpet.

The Gully brothers didn't come inside when they got to the Hanson house; instead, they made a beeline for the silver maples, as Debbie Hanson watched from her window.

"When I looked out the window, I saw both brothers standing with their arms outstretched, and then they got a measuring tape to measure the trunk," she said. "It was like watching two little boys measuring a tree to see if it would fit their treehouse."

Jim Gully said he knows a bit about trees, from his own interest and because his wife is a Master Gardener, and he and his brother always notice the unique trees they see while out laying carpet. He said he felt it necessary to let the Hansons know their trees were special -- especially the larger one on the creek's south bank.

"We just looked out and saw the tree and said, 'Man, that's the biggest tree,'" Gully said. "We always notice some of the big trees... We just told her it might be a champion tree because it's the biggest maple we'd ever seen."

So Debbie was inspired to do a little research about the Champion Tree program. The list of trees began with H.A. Stephens' book, "Trees, Shrubs and Woody Vines of Kansas," and the Kansas Forest Service has kept the list going, people nominating new trees as they are found.

Trees are rated with a point system established by the American Forests' National Register of Big Trees. One point is awarded for each inch of the trunk's circumference four and a half feet from the ground, one point per foot of height and one-fourth of a point is given per foot of crown spread.

Crown spread is the distance, in feet, from the end of the branches on one side of the tree, through the trunk, to the ends of the branches on the opposite side.

The current champion silver maple is also in Johnson County. It is located at Timberlake Girl Scout Camp in Stilwell and earned the title in 2003. With a 20-foot, 5-inch circumference, a 94-foot height and a crown spread of 110 feet, it has 367 total points.

"I read what the diameter of what that tree was, and my husband and I went out to measure our tree, and we thought it was bigger," Debbie Hanson said. "And then there's our neighbor's tree; it looks bigger than ours."

The Hansons contacted the Monticello Community Historical Society, who are sponsoring the nomination. They also nominated the tree near the back of their property, with the permission of their neighbors, Mark and Cheryl White.

The family plans a party of sorts for the measuring next week; they've invited members of the historical society and Dwayne and Cheryl Marsden, the former owners of their house.

Debbie Hanson says she sees it as a good learning experience for her children, especially for her 9-year-old son, who is beginning to learn more about history in school.

"I think it's interesting for kids to know there are some things that come before us, and some things that will be here long after us," she said. "It's a good chance to take a look at our past and see who you are and where you are in the world. My son will walk under that tree and think maybe, 75 years ago, there was a boy walking along the creek under the tree, looking for frogs, just like he's at the creak looking for frogs."

Shawnee already has one champion tree, according to the Kansas Forrest Service's list -- an Eastern Hemlock, nominated in 2005 and located in the Shawnee Cemetery at 61st and Quivira. Though obviously large for its type, it's a bit smaller than the maples, standing just 58 feet tall and ranked at 186 points.

Should the Shawnee trees only come close, they could make the list anyway; the state lists "co-champions" if trees are within five points of one another.