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Crews were busy this morning removing three of the 12 eucalyptus trees growing near the entrance to Hap Magee Ranch Park on La Gonda Way in Danville.

"During some of recent storms we had limbs come down so we had an arborist do a report on all those trees," said Jed Johnson, maintenance services manager for Danville. "Three are diseased - the crown and trunk are diseased."

Although it is natural for branches to fall, he explained, town maintenance workers also noticed a growth at the base of the trees that alarmed them.

"This mushroom-type growth is usually a precursor that something else is going on," said Johnson.

He said that in cases like this, when the trees are on a public roadway, it becomes a safety issue.

The town hired a certified arborist, who reported that three of the trees needed to be removed because of significant decay in the base of the trunks. The arborist also reported that the eucalyptus trees at Hap Magee Ranch are about 90 years old, said Johnson.

"It was typical for ranches to plant eucalyptus to serve as a wind barrier," he added. "It's a fast growing tree."

After the arborist's report, the job was put out to bid and awarded to West Coast Arborist for just under $6,000.

West Coast workers were removing branches Monday morning and feeding them into chippers on La Gonda Way while traffic was being slowed and routed carefully around the work by flagmen.

"The smaller limbs are typically put through a chipper to be utilized as mulch," said Johnson.

The work should be completed Tuesday.

Possible replacement or other landscaping will be decided upon by the Joint Powers and Operations Committee for Hap Magee Ranch Park. The park is located in Danville and in unincorporated Alamo.

Historian Beverly Lane also noted that ranchers found that eucalyptus trees made good windbreaks, and many planted them in the San Ramon Valley.

"Eucalyptus came to California with the Gold Rush," Lane wrote in her column, "Presenting the Past: Ah, the ubiquitous eucalyptus," for the Danville Weekly.

"Australian miners sailed here on ships made of ancient blue gum eucalyptus and brought sacks of the seeds with them. As gold miners became farmers, they were happy to plant these seedlings since most of the desirable land was nearly treeless and the eucalyptus grew quickly. One early report stated a grower had 40-foot trees in just six years."