ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Ivan Laurin of Carney won a prize for reporting a potential state champion tree in Menominee County in ReLeaf Michigan’s Big Tree Hunt.

The tree found is a swamp cottonwood in Carney that is 172 inches in circumference. Eighteen trees submitted for the contest qualified as new potential state champion trees. The potential state champion trees are forwarded to the state coordinator of the Michigan Big Tree Program, Ted Reuschel. The program considers additional criteria and scores them accordingly. High-scoring trees enter the Big Tree database as state champion trees.

The contest, which awards participants for identifying the biggest trees in Michigan, began in the spring of 2020 and ended this past August. More than 650 entries were received, including from 79 of the state’s 83 counties.

The winning entry for each county was verified on site by professional arborists and foresters from throughout the state. The largest trees in the state were found in all sorts of places, including backyards, local parks, cemeteries and hiking trails. Due to many trees being on private property, the specific location of every winning tree is kept confidential.

Certificates and prizes were awarded for several categories: the largest tree submitted from each county, the largest tree in different age groups, the largest eastern white pine (Michigan’s state tree) and any new potential state champion trees.

The grand prize for the largest tree in the contest submitted by a Big Tree Hunter younger than 15 went to Aidan Presnell. With help from his sister, Presnell found an eastern cottonwood in Washtenaw County that measured 308 inches around, or more than 25 feet. The grand prize for the largest tree submitted from a Big Tree Hunter age 16 or older was awarded to both Mike Antoszewski and Paul Funk. Each of them entered an eastern cottonwood in Monroe County measuring 301 inches around.

The grand prize for the largest eastern white pine was another two-way tie, with two submissions measuring approximately 181 inches. One came from Tom Hollis and his granddaughter, Payton Rue, in Clinton County. The other was submitted by Nicholas Hansen, in Marquette County.

A complete list of winners is available on www.BigTreeHunt.com.

The contest also helps discover eligible trees for the National Register of Big Trees, updated every spring and fall by American Forests. As recently as 2012, Michigan had 23 registered champion trees, but today only five are registered. The Big Tree Hunt is an excellent opportunity to add to this list and get Michigan trees noticed nationwide.

The 2020-2022 Michigan Big Tree Hunt was made possible thanks to the support of its sponsors. The premier sponsor of the Big Tree Hunt was Nissan North America, which provided critical funding that allowed the ReLeaf Michigan team to devote resources to executing the Big Tree Hunt. Other sponsors included Consumers Energy, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, the International Society of Arboriculture Michigan, the Michigan Botanical Club, the Michigan Botanical Foundation, and the Michigan State University Department of Forestry.

Since 1993, ReLeaf Michigan, a state-wide nonprofit tree organization, has challenged the public to find Michigan’s largest living trees through its Big Tree Hunt contest.

ReLeaf Michigan’s mission is to educate the public on trees’ value and how to properly select, plant and maintain them. Its board is made up primarily of arborists, foresters and researchers passionate about preserving one of Michigan’s most significant resources: trees. Learn more at releafmichigan.org.