In a sadly ironic twist, a pine tree planted in Los Angeles as a memorial to George Harrison has died, the victim of actual beetles.
George lived out his last years in LA, and died there in 2001 at the age of 58. He was cremated at the famous Hollywood Forever Cemetery. In 2004, a pine tree was dedicated to his memory, close to the Griffith Observatory. It was a subtle memorial, with no obvious signs directing people to its location and and no hordes of tourists snapping pictures, like the “Imagine” memorial to John Lennon in Central Park. There was just a small plaque on the ground in front of the tree, inscribed “In memory of a great humanitarian who touched the world as an artist, a musician and a gardener.” It included a quote by the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi: “For the forest to be green, each tree must be green.”
The tree had grown to ten feet tall as of 2013, but could not resist the onslaught of tree beetles (primarily bark beetles and ladybug beetles) that are common in Griffith Park. Though no date has been set, an LA City Councilman stated that the tree would be replanted.
