- During the state visit last week, French President Emmanuel Macron and US President Donald Trump planted a tree that Macron brought as a gift from a forest in France.
- The tree had grown where US Marines fought a legendary battle during World War I.
- But on Saturday, Reuters photos show a yellow spot where the two leaders planted the tree.
- The French ambassador to the US explained the tree was in quarantine since it came from another country.
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Photos show the tree Macron and Trump planted at the White House is no longer on the South Lawn — but there's a good reason why
During a state visit last week, French President Emmanuel Macron and US President Donald Trump planted a tree that Macron brought as a gift. But on Saturday, photos show a yellow spot in the grass where they planted the tree.
Over the weekend, the oak sapling that French President Emmanuel Macron brought from a forest in France for him and US President Donald Trump to plant on the South Lawn of the White House disappeared.
The photos of the tree-planting sparked many memes on Tuesday:
But on Saturday, Reuters photographer Yuri Gripas captured photos that show the tree was no longer where Trump and Macron planted it:
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Here's a closer look at the yellow patch on the grass where the tree was:
The Daily Mail, BBC News, and HuffPost France speculated that the tree may have been temporarily removed under federal rules since it was an imported plant.
An anonymous source from Macron's administration told HuffPost France that US Customs and Border Control requires any imported plant be inspected and undergo a period of quarantine.
On Monday, the French ambassador to the US confirmed this was the case.
"It is in quarantine which is mandatory for any living organism imported to the US," Gérard Araud tweeted. "It will be replanted afterwards."
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He also explained that the sapling's roots "remain carefully isolated" in plastic, so they didn't expose the South Lawn to any possible diseases or foreign pests when Macron and Trump planted the tree the day after he arrived in DC.
The White House did not respond to a request for comment on the tree's whereabouts.
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