Black Oak    Robert Leverett    Dec 15, 2002 11:32 PST  Ents:       My son Rob, John Knuerr, and I scouted areas near the Connecticut River in the outskirts of Greenfield. Rob showed us a black oak that appears to be the new state champion. Its measurements are:     Circumference: 181.2 inches     Height:              90.6 feet     Avg Spread:       90 feet     Points:             294                    The black oak beats the one listed as champion in the 1995 register by 34 points. A sycamore in the vicinity measured 9.4 feet in girth and 117.4 feet in height. Not bad. On the way home we measured a cottonwood in Deerfield to 10.4 feet in circumference and 107.9 feet tall.     There are many mature cottonwoods along the banks of the Connecticut River that measure 8 to 11 feet in circumference and 100 to 110 feet in height. There are also pockets of much larger trees waiting to be documented. Observing cottonwoods and sycamores growing side by side, the sycamores will almost always top the cottonwoods by 5 to 15 feet. Girths will be larger by about a foot. Bob   Home