Who would have imagined it? Champion trees at Medford Leas? Jane Weston, Director of Development and Community Relations, is delighted. “It’s very exciting!” she said, and suggested that Ken Hutz, our arborist, could describe how it came about.
Ken says he has been aware of the Big Tree Registry for a long time. It’s a list of champion trees compiled by the NJ Forest Service, under the Department of Environmental Protection of the State of New Jersey. The purpose, according to the Forestry, is to make “a compilation of the largest native and naturalized tree species in the state,” with the goal of preserving these trees for their environmental and historical value.
How does a tree get to be a champion? There is a nominating process. Ken wondered if our iconic American Holly at the entrance to the Community Building parking lot might qualify for it. This meant that certain measurements had to be taken: the height, the circumference of its trunk, and the spread of its crown. Each measurement is given a certain number of points. The tree with the highest sum for that species is crowned the champion.
Dave Bartram had worked a lot with Ken measuring other trees, so Ken enlisted his help in measuring the holly. The two of them recorded all the measurements and Ken sent them in, along with the name of the species, botanical and common, and the location.
Shortly after Ken’s nomination, a forest ranger arrived to examine the holly. Sadly, he determined that the holly wasn’t as big as the reigning champion already on the list. (It did have enough points to merit a runner-up place.)
However, driving with Ken around the campus, the ranger was impressed with several other trees and decided that Medford Leas warranted a second visit. One of his colleagues came and suggested four special trees for nomination. The required measurements were taken and Ken sent in their nominations. All four won championships!
Here are the locations of our champions. The Green Leaf Weeping Japanese Maple is in Court 7; the Seven Sons Tree is in Court 20; the Incense Cedar and the Arizona Cyprus are in the Pinetum.
At present there are over 700 trees on the New Jersey Big Tree Registry. Many of these are interesting and unusual, and those over a hundred years old have been a part of history. Ken attributes the number of unusual trees at Medford Leas to Lew Barton, one of our founders, and Paul Meyer, of the Morris Arboretum, who went on tireless searches for them in the early days of our community.
There is a National Big Tree Registry. Who knows? Our champions may be recorded on it some day.
— From an article by Betsy Pennink in the November 2019 issue of Medford Leas Life.
Note: Unfortunately, on June 3, 2020, a fast moving storm with very high winds blew over our Champion Arizona Cypress.