FELLSMERE – Driving around the streets of Fellsmere, it’s difficult to miss the carved tree stumps that dot the city.
A fish here. An eagle there. And now there are four more. Rick Cox of R&S Woodcarving recently carved up four stumps of trees that had come to the end of their life cycle.
“We don’t try to tell him what to do,” Fellsmere City Manager Jason Nunemaker said, “just ‘go and be creative.'”
Cox has told the city that it’s best not to force a particular image from the stumps, according to Nunemaker. He explained that until Cox starts in on the stump with his chainsaw, he doesn’t know how the wood would react.
The four additions to the town include a stump carved with images of four old men merged with cottage-type houses with chimneys, a pair of bear cubs, a trio of raccoons and a large bird perched atop a reshaped stump.
“Maybe we’ve kidnapped some of the grouches from Sebastian and encased them in the tree,” Nunemaker suggested, referring to the stump located on S. Broadway near the basketball court at Little League Park.
The other three new additions line N. Hickory Street between County Road 512 and Wyoming Avenue.
The city paid R&S Woodcarving $2,750 for the work on the four stumps. The money came from the city’s Community Redevelopment Agency funds because they are characterized a pieces of public art.
Nunemaker said the city is beginning to identify trees around the city that are nearing the end of their life, that way they can prioritize which ones could possibly be carved into artwork.
“I couldn’t be happier,” he said of the work. “It’s a cool way to jazz up the city.”