Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Heritage trees celebrated on Arbor Day
WEST GOSHEN >> Township representatives and residents gathered Friday at the 300-year-old weeping beech tree on Old Fern Hill Road to commemorate Arbor Day 2021 and satisfy one of four standards required to be recognized as a Tree City USA by the Arbor Day Foundation.
Supervisor Ashley Gagne presented opening remarks and read the township’s official Arbor Day proclamation, followed by Sustainability Advisory Committee member Susan Charkes, who spoke about the history of the weeping beech and of the township’s four other known heritage trees — all of them oaks.
Parks and Recreation board member Eunice Alexander provided a detailed history of the beech and concluded by singing traditional Welsh folk song, “The Ash Grove,” cleverly substituting “beech” for “ash” in the lyrics while strumming her guitar. SAC Chair Melanie Vile, Ph.D., made closing remarks and generously donated silver maple saplings from her yard. Bill Webb, the township’s zoning officer, donated six young arborvitae. The SAC also handed out branded reusable grocery bags, which are free (one per resident) and available upon request at the township building.
Although the most wellknown of the township’s heritage trees is the European weeping beech at (roughly) 908 Old Fern Hill Road, four other such trees have been identified.
The weeping beech is reputed to have been planted by Alexander Bane, a Quaker farmer, around 1711. Its central stem was recently cut back; the tree now resembles a grove of beeches in different stages of life. Currently located on private property, the owner plans to convey the beech to the township soon.
Heritage trees are living repositories of West Goshen’s history. Over centuries they have survived storms, drought, disease, and the changes humans have wrought on the landscape. They have nourished and sheltered countless generations of insects, birds, and animals. Imagine the stories they would have to tell if only they could speak!
Four other West Goshen heritage trees have been identified; two are white oaks and two are red oaks. See the map here. All are on private property but can be appreciated from a public street.
Unlike the beech, which was purposely planted, the heritage oaks are likely remnants of forests that dominated Pennsylvania’s landscape before European settlement. The trees are estimated to be 200 to more than 300 years old.
Generally, trees get larger as they age, but an old tree is not necessarily large, and vice versa. Other factors that affect a tree’s height and girth include its location — wetter areas tend to have larger trees — and competition from other trees. You can estimate a tree’s age from its diameter. The most accurate measurement is by counting the rings, but that requires a core sample or stump measurement.