As officials try to figure out what to do with the charred hull of the Bidwell Mansion in Chico, a tree on the site has been deemed a state champion.
It is being recognized as the largest southern magnolia in California.
This southern magnolia in Chico has been deemed the biggest of its species in California. (Image: Kathryn Reed)
This southern magnolia that is just steps from the mansion has a circumference of 226 inches, a height of 92 feet and a crown spread of 65 feet for a total of 334.25 points.
This is 55 points more than the previous champion southern magnolia.
According to the California State Parks and Recreation, “The California Register of Big Trees uses the American Forests organization’s points formula to determine if a tree is a champion. This formula includes the trunk circumference in inches plus the height in feet plus a quarter of the average crown spread in feet to achieve total points.”
While Chico is known as the city of trees, the southern magnolia is not native to California. Even so, the one in front of the mansion was planted by John Bidwell when the mansion was being constructed in 1865. This makes the tree 161 years old.
“It sustained some damage from the arson fire in December 2024 that destroyed the mansion, but the tree has put on new growth and has been recovering nicely. … the tree will be carefully monitored as remediation efforts within the historic park take place,” State Parks said.
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