Located on Old Fern Hill Road, the venerable European weeping beech—star of the Arbor Day 2021 celebration—is a very old and special tree that once anchored a public park after being gifted to the Township by Longwood Gardens in 1975. Over its long lifetime, the tree has spread out, retired its central stem, extended its limbs, and sprouted new stems and branches, so that it now covers 10,000 square feet.
Over the past two years, thanks to the efforts of SAC member Susan Charkes and others, there are several favorable developments to report, the most significant of which is that the property owner granted the Township an easement for care of the tree. In December the site was expertly cleaned by Bernie Ward, a landscape contractor, enabling Bartlett Tree Experts to finalize their assessment of the tree’s condition and provide a customized maintenance plan to support the health and longevity of this special heritage tree. This month Bartlett implemented the first annual preventive treatment for disease and insect infestation and fertilized the immediate area to provide nutrients found missing from the soil.