INTO THE WOODS: Princeton’s Open Space Manager Inga Reich holds a plaque designating John Witherspoon Woods and the 153-Acre Wood as part of the Old-Growth Forest Network. Also pictured at John Witherspoon Woods are staff members from local nonprofits and community volunteers.

By Anne Levin

There are forests, and there are old-growth forests. The latter are increasingly rare, and Princeton has two of them.

On Monday, John Witherspoon Woods and the 153-Acre Wood were inducted into the national Old-Growth Forest Network (OGFN). The ceremony, held at John Witherspoon Woods, was followed by a one-mile hike through the woods. In attendance were Princeton’s Open Space Manager Inga Reich, Anna Corichi from the Friends of Princeton Open Space (FOPOS), Patricia Shanley from the Ridgeview Conservancy, Jim Waltman from The Watershed Institute, Mayor Mark Freda, and some local citizens.

“The importance of the preservation of these rare forests cannot be overemphasized,” said Brian Kane, Mid-Atlantic regional manager with the Old Growth Forest Network, in a press release. “As seen here at Witherspoon Woods and 153-Acre Wood, the forests perform critical environmental services such as storing carbon, providing wildlife habitat, and cleansing and retaining stormwater. OGFN is grateful that the Princeton community values its old-growth forests and will enable its residents and visitors to marvel at these majestic old hardwoods far into the future as they grow even more mature and more beautiful.”

It’s not only about centuries-old trees. “The defining attributes extend beyond just old trees to include canopy gaps created by tree deaths, pit-and-mound topography from fallen trees, and intact soils supporting a healthy fungal network,” according to the website biologyinsights.com, which estimates that only a small percentage of original old-growth forest remains in this country.

John Witherspoon Woods and the 153-Acre Wood are the sixth and seventh in New Jersey to be inducted into the OGFN, which has 325 forests in its continuously expanding network of protected, publicly accessible old-growth forests.

Witherspoon Woods, which is 40 acres, is described by the OGFN as a mixed hardwood forest with stately red and white oak, tulip poplar, black cherry, red maple, and beech trees. Several tulip poplars measure over six feet in diameter while some oaks exceed a 10-foot diameter. Also in the forest are ironwood and American holly, understory trees, a boulder field, and several large outcrops including Devil’s Cave, “a remarkable rock formation that consists of several big diabase boulders created by a volcanic intrusion,” reads the release.

Several areas of old-growth forests that have not been logged for at least a century are in the 153-Acre Wood. Mature American beech, white oak, and tulip poplar are found along the Beech Hollow Loop, and another area of highly mature hardwood trees along with a flourishing understory of spicebush is at the end of the loop trail at what is known as the Red Oak Room. Other unique features include a “boulder bench” said to date back “to when the supercontinent Pangaea existed about 200 million years ago, as well as remnants of stone walls built by 19th century farmers who once cultivated crops on this forest land.”

As part of Princeton’s Adopt-a-Park program, FOPOS has taken on John Witherspoon Woods.

The nonprofit works to defend the woods “against invasive plants, pathogens like beech leaf disease, and other threats, just as they defend us against flooding, greenhouse gases and heat,” said Wendy Mager, FOPOS president. “It’s wonderful that John Witherspoon Woods is a very special place, housing some of the oldest trees in Princeton along with unique plant populations indicative of mature, healthy forests. Thick tree trunks of beech, oak, and tulip poplar rise to form a dense woodland canopy, keeping forest and water temperatures cool and stabilized — this is particularly evident if you’ve ever taken a hike through these woods on a hot summer day.”

Waltman said the old-growth forests “play a critical role in sustaining clean water and controlling stormwater runoff, provide essential habitat for a range of fish and wildlife species, and present an important refuge for people to escape the noise and conflict of modern times.”

Shanley praised the efforts of public officials and committed citizens in preserving the 153-Acre Wood. “Rather than being razed for 19 homes, this magnificent forest endures as habitat for rare species, a key link in Princeton’s Emerald Necklace, and a member of the esteemed national Old-Growth Forest Network,” she said.