Pocket Park trees tranformed

By LARRY HOLCOMBE

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Ironwood — Kay Johnson said her “art brain” kicked in when she saw the devastation that had befallen a pair of small trees in the Pocket Park in downtown Ironwood by a heavy, early October snowfall a couple years ago.

The snow load had swashed the two ornamental Norway maples in the park at the corner of Suffolk and Aurora streets, leaving many of the branches broken.

“I thought there must be something we can do with these trees, and I remembered the carving that had been done at the Depot Park,” said Johnson, a member of the Master Gardeners, a group which tends the Pocket Park. “We contacted the same fellow who had done that carving. We hoped something could be done with what was left with the trees in the Pocket Park.”

Nathan Nuszkiewicz of Rhinelander, Wis., carved a large stump in Depot Park a number of years ago into three figures portraying historical industries here — a miner, a logger and a railroad worker. At the time, he also carved another large downed tree trunk into an ornate bench that sits outside the old depot. Much of the carving was done with chainsaws.

“He did such a nice job with the Depot Park. We were hopeful he could work his magic in the Pocket Park and it looks great,” said Johnson, who lives in Ironwood. “He came in with mini chainsaws and created something really wonderful.”

Johnson said she was hopeful that, even with the small scale of these two ornamental trees, Nuszkiewicz could work his magic. He didn’t disappoint.

“There are flowers, frogs, birds, butterflies — each branch has different carvings. It’s so intricate. He did a fantastic job,” she said.

Johnson said the Master Gardners are now forming plans to replant the areas around the two trees that will help incorporate the carvings into the garden. She envisions taller vegetation around the trees.

“We have to be careful what we choose, because everything around here is Zone 4,” she said. “We want it to look nice.”

Nuszkiewicz, of Potlicker Custom Chainsaw Sculptures, did the carving in July and left Johnson with the task of sealing the bare wood — two coats of clear oil-based sealant a week, applied with a rag so she can work it into all the crevices, through this month and then periodic treatments after that.

“I started with my deck sprayer, but the rag works much better,” Johnson said. “I can really rub it in good.”

Johnson said the project was a collaboration between the Master Gardeners and the Downtown Ironwood Development Authority. They each paid $500 to fund the project.