A trek through Batsto Village in Wharton State Forest in search of trees for Stockton University’s maple syrup project ended in the discovery of a champion tree, now recorded as the largest of its kind in New Jersey.
Matthew Olson, assistant professor of Environmental Science at Stockton, stumbled on the giant post oak tree while looking for red maple trees with syrup tapping potential. Olsen returned with Stockton Dendrology students to measure the tree.
Dendrology is an Environmental Science course that explores the anatomy, physiology and ecology of trees. Students identify species by looking at leaves, bark, twigs, buds and fruit.
The tree is the largest post oak in Burlington County and the largest in the state out of two listed, according to a letter from Joseph Bennett, a New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection assistant regional forester.
“Trees of this size are mega resources and perform 600 times the environmental benefits of typical trees,” Bennett wrote.
The champion tree measures 64 feet high, 11 feet 3 inches at its circumference and has a crown spread of 80 feet, which gives it 219 points using the American Forests national system.
“My first impression of the tree was that it was gigantic! I knew it must have been there for a really long time since it was so large, and I was pretty excited to find out if it was going to be a state champ,” said student Forrest Jennings.
The Dendrology class discovery joins the list of more than 500 total champion trees in the state with 214 being publicly visible. The New Jersey Forest Service has been managing the register of big trees since the 1930s.
