Bringing Back the American Chestnut Tree - In the Hopewell Valley

by Tom Ogren

American Chestnuts

The Hopewell Township Environmental Commission and Friends of Hopewell Valley Open Space (FoHVOS) teamed up in early May to plant 170 American chestnuts at the Fiddler's Creek Preserve (opposite Baldpate Mountain.) The preserve features a fenced in 40-acre former farm field which is the site of a large scale re-forestation effort by FoHVOS and the Mercer County Park Commission. Over 7,000 trees and shrubs have been planted by volunteers at the site since 2011.    

Chestnut planting at Fiddler's Creek

Environmental Commission member Mike Aucott initiated the chestnut planting project and directed the planting at several locations throughout Hopewell Township. The planting of the chestnuts this May at Fiddlers Creek Preserve was done by volunteers and FoHVOS Stewardship Director Mike Van Clef. The photo at right shows the location of where some chestnuts were planted. Similar groupings of planting sites were scattered throughout the enclosed area. The plastic tubes tied to stakes were placed on top of the chestnuts to protect them from being eaten by squirrels.                                                            

Stately American chestnut tree
from decades past

The American chestnut (Castanea dentata) is a large tree in the beech family native to eastern North America.  Before the species was devastated by chestnut blight, an invasive fungal disease, it was one of the most important forest trees throughout its range and was considered the finest chestnut tree in the world. It is estimated that between 3 and 4 billion American chestnut trees were destroyed in the first half of the 20th century by blight after its initial discovery in 1904. Chestnut blight is caused by an Asian bark fungus introduced into North America on imported Asiatic chestnut trees. 

Appalachian family with
American chestnut tree

The planting at Fiddler's Creek is part of a large scale cross breeding effort to plant thousands of chestnuts throughout the Northeast. This effort is spearheaded by The American Chestnut Foundation which has pioneered a backcross breeding technique in an attempt to restore the American chestnut to its original habitat. What was done at the Fiddler's Creek Preserve is the first time hybrid chestnuts have been planted in New Jersey using this technique. A second stage involves the planting of hybrid chestnut seedlings several years from now, which will cross breed with the trees planted from chestnuts.

Hopefully we can bring this prized hardwood tree back to the Hopewell Valley!

(Hikers can access Fiddler's Creek Preserve and a small parking area from Fiddler's Creek Road via a dirt driveway about a quarter mile east of the Baldpate Mountain entrance.  A small Fiddler's Creek Preserve sign marks the driveway entrance.)

Tom Ogren has been a FoHVOS Trustee since 2007 and is a former Pennington Borough Council member. In his free time, you'll find Tom planting trees and building trails in preserves throughout our Valley.

                         

                                    

Film Premiere & Panel Discussion

 

PA/NJ lead the nation in deer-vehicle collision.

Seeing dead deer on the side of the road is a common experience in Hopewell Valley. Yet, most of us still cringe at the scene. 

This increasingly frequent sight is an upsetting symptom of a much larger issue.  As the deer population increases, the impact is devastating to both the deer and our local economy.

Through grant funding, local nonprofits Friends of Hopewell Valley Open Space (FoHVOS) and The Sourland Conservancy commissioned documentary filmmaker Jared Flesher to explore the impact of deer on the local environment.

FoHVOS Stewardship Director Michael Van Clef Ph.D appears in the film and asks the disturbing question, “Who would have thought that we literally cannot grow new trees in a forest?” He explains that excessive deer destroy the forest understory where new trees normally take root.

The short film “The Deer Stand,” premiers at the new Hopewell Theatre on October 3^rd and will be followed by a panel discussion that includes the filmmaker, an ecologist, a sustainable farmer, law enforcement, hunters and others.

Filmmaker Jared Flesher will be on the panel and discuss his experience making the film. Panelists Michael Van Clef Ph.D, Brian Kubin, a management hunter, and Chris Moran, a new hunter, all appear in the film.

Jon McConaughy, co-founder of Brick Farm Groups and a panelist, will share that deer are among the biggest threats to food costs from the perspective of a local sustainable farmer.

Hopewell Township Police Chief Lance Maloney is a panelist that will share his insights regarding impact of deer accidents throughout Hopewell Valley.

2017 Hopewell Valley Central High School graduate Fiona Crawford rounds out our panel to share the important perspective of an active, budding environmentalist. 

The film and panel discussion will engage anyone that cares about maintaining Hopewell's bucolic environment. Our responsibility goes far beyond simply preserving open space. We need to ensure that we take care of our land.  It is the heart and soul needed to ensure our quality of life here in the Valley. 

Sponsor Trattoria Procaccini will provide seasonal appetizers and Sourland Mountain Spirits will serve cocktails, and 

coffee, tea and sweets will be provided. 

It should be a great evening at The Hopewell Theatre, this Tuesday, October 3rd at 7pm. Don't miss it.

For more information and to reserve tickets, visit: www.fohvos.org/2017DeerStand.html

Remembering Ted Stiles

 President
Friends of Hopewell Valley Open Space
1989 - 2007

While most Hopewell Valley folks know Baldpate Mountain, few newcomers are familiar with its rich history including the decade long fight led by Friends of Hopewell Valley Open Space (FoHVOS) early member Ted Stiles to save this beautiful land from development.

According to majority owner, Mercer County:

  

“In 1986 the property was sold to Trap Rock Industries, who planned to expand the quarry that already existed on Route 29.  When these plans failed, the remaining land was destined to be sold for luxury housing development.  Public concern and the efforts of the late conservationist Ted Stiles led to the property’s acquisition by Mercer County in 1998, creating today’s Ted Stiles Preserve at Baldpate Mountain.”

The Ted Stiles Preserve at Baldpate Mountain sign

The Ted Stiles Preserve at Baldpate Mountain now comprises over 1500 acres, making it the largest preserved natural area in Mercer County. 

Today marks the 10-year anniversary of Ted Stiles’s passing, yet his legacy lives on in our continued work at Friends of Hopewell Valley Open Space. 

We try to hold true to his vision and passion to ensure the land will be used and appreciated for generations to come.

For Ted, the presence of species like the Hooded or Kentucky Warbler would have further confirmed the great importance of protecting Baldpate. According to FoHVOS Stewardship Director, Mike Van Clef Ph.D.:

Kentucky Warbler

Hooded Warbler

"Above all else, Ted was fueled by an unabiding love of nature.  As an ecologist, he studied its intricacies and the interactions between its components (especially the co-evolution between birds and the fruit they eat). But for him, this was not enough.  He felt compelled to protect every last piece of nature that was humanly possible.  Untiring, he protected lands throughout the state, including adding many acres to the Hutcheson Memorial Forest (one of New Jersey's only old growth forests).  Lucky for all residents of the Hopewell Valley, Ted focused his protection efforts where he lived."  

Ted led or assisted with the protection of nearly 6,500 acres, which is over half of the protected lands in the Valley.  FoHVOS has continued his work and we now have increased our impact to almost 60% of the protected lands throughout the Valley.  A map and list of locations of our preserves is available here.

Our most recent preserve at Mount Rose will open in June 2017. Co-owners include Mercer County, New Jersey Conservation Foundation, and Hopewell Township. We know that Ted would be so proud to see that work conclude with nearly 400 acres of preserved land.

Bronze Plaque dedicated at the first Ted Stiles Memorial Hike