Donald Trump made a scene of the planting of a new sapling in place of the nearly 200-year-old Jackson Magnolia tree that was cut down from the White House compound after the president called it a hazard. He used a golden shovel to put dirt on the spot and said, "We have a beautiful tree now at the White House."

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The new sapling planted in place of the old tree is a direct descendant of the “Jackson Magnolia." It is grown at the National Park Service Greenhouse as part of preparations to replace the parent tree when it is no longer viable to have it on the premises.  The National Park Service is responsible for managing the White House grounds.

The remnants of the old tree won't be discarded but preserved as part of history by the Office of the Curator. The White House will also honour the remains of the  Jackson Magnolia tree.

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Media persons were not allowed to witness the new planting, although the White House later released a short video clip 

Trump ordered the removal of the original Jackson Magnolia tree on March 30, saying that it was in a terrible condition and a very dangerous safety hazard. The tree stood at the White House entrance near the west side of the South Portico. This is the spot where leaders of foreign countries are welcomed. US presidents also walk through this place while leaving to board the Marine One helicopter.

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The White House consulted with Peter Hart, a registered consulting arborist and member of the American Society of Consulting Arborists. He said that the tree had “surpassed the time of serving as an aesthetic and historic landmark" and can cause potential harm because of the risk of structural failure. 

US president Andrew Jackson planted the seeds

Andrew Jackson, the seventh president of the United States, is believed to have planted the trees himself in 1829. He brought the seeds from the Hermitage, his home near Nashville, Tennessee, and planted them to honour his late wife, Rachel, who passed away weeks before he was sworn to the office.

However, there is no real confirmation of Jackson planting the tree that is part of a group of magnolias near the South Portico. There is historical photographic documentation that shows the magnolias weren't present at the South Portico until the 1860s.

The trees were designated the Witness Trees in 2006 by the National Park Service because it has witnessed several historic events that happened on the ground near them. 

When an airplane crashed into the Magnolia trees

The Jackson Magnolias had a Cessna airplane crash into them in 1994 in an incident which targeted the White House. A truck driver named Frank Eugene Corder stole a Cessna 150 on September 11. He was heavily drunk and tried to crash it into the wall of the White House. However, he missed and hit the South Lawn on early September 12, 1994, and was killed on impact.