A New View of the Palm and the Pine-
The Two Trees to be Replaced by 30 trees in Caltrans Plan
The Palm and the Pine to the left will eventually be taken out of the median on Highway 99 and will be placed with 30 trees west of the roadway. Photo: Steve Newvine
The center of California, the midpoint between the Mexican and the Oregon border, is the Palm and the Pine, on California Highway 99 south of Madera.
Those two trees signify to drivers that they are crossing from the palm trees of southern California to the pine trees of the north.
The trees were planted decades ago. However, with no solid record of how they started, there have been stories about whose idea it was to create this symbol of the state's center.
One version follows the line of two college students planting trees. Another version points to a store owner who may have planted them to promote his business.
In addition to the stories about the trees' planting, there was also a country song, Northern California (Where the Palm Tree Meets the Pine).
California Gold host Huell Howser featured the trees in one of his episodes from the 1990s.
This column has discussed the palm and Pine several times over the past twelve years. I have also been interviewed by broadcast stations in Los Angeles and Sacramento about the trees and their meaning to the region.
This photo from Google Earth is about as close as anyone can get to the trees safely now.
Something new is coming along to give the Palm and the Pine the treatment they deserve in signifying the center of the state. Caltrans is expanding that section of Highway 99 beginning in 2025. The two trees will be removed, but in their place will be a new presentation that no one should miss.
The plan calls for planting 15 pine and 15 palm trees along the west side of Highway 99, a short distance south of the current spot. Caltrans believes the 15 new trees will give motorists passing seventy miles per hour a better view of the Palm and the Pine.
Many have shared stories of driving by the two trees for years without realizing they are the famed Palm and Pine.
Some, including me, stressed that transportation planners and local government leaders might have missed an opportunity to do something special to promote this unique landmark.
There is currently no artist's conception of the new display of palms and pines. This is the road architecture plan from Caltrans showing where the new trees will be placed.
It may have taken the state a while to figure out a better way to show off the center of the state, but with highway expansion a necessity, the time was right.
According to the Caltrans plan for the new Palm and Pine designation, the spot will be an upgraded regional landmark symbolizing the center of California.
The Caltrans plan states, “’Where the Palm Meets the Pine’ landmark trees add to the visual character of the project corridor.”
Caltrans considered two other options when it became clear this portion of Highway 99 was ready for expansion.
Both rejected options would have kept the location of the trees in an expanded median. Both were dropped as it impacted the width of the shoulders of the road, restricted maintenance access, and posed safety concerns.
This is the anticipated new home for the Palm and the Pine along Highway 99. Photo: Steve Newvine
According to Caltrans Public Information Officer Larry Johnson, “With the added lanes, one in each direction, and the new center divider, the trees had to come out.”
When finished, this section of Highway 99 will have six lanes of traffic. The roadway has been in a seemingly perpetual state of expansion over the past decade, including widening projects here in Merced County over the past few years.
Some have expressed concerns over the plan. The Marketing Director for the Madera County tourism agency reached out to the state for consideration of a designated rest area where people can pull off the highway.
Another idea was to move the presentation north near the Fossil Discovery Center of Madera County.
The exact location on Highway 99 is of little concern, given that the actual geographical center of the state is about forty miles due east from the roadway in North Fork, Madera County.
Regardless of those concerns, the plan to replace the two trees with thirty and move the whole presentation to the western side of the highway is in the works.
The old trees will be removed in 2025, and the new trees—all thirty of them—will be planted by early 2026.
Despite any concerns others may have, everyone likely agrees that the future home for the Land of the Palm and the Pine will be upgraded from the current location.
Steve Newvine lives in Merced.
He is filling in for host Roger Wood on KYOS Community Conversations on Saturday, July 20. One of his guests will be the regional spokesperson for Caltrans, who will discuss the Palm and the Pine.
Steve’s book, Rocket Reporter, is available at ROCKET REPORTER (lulu.com). His California books are available locally from the Merced Courthouse Museum Gift Shop.