Ask anyone who loves Dartmouth where that love began, and chances are good that the reply will be "at first sight." That first sight - Dartmouth’s distinctive look and sense of place - is defined, in many ways, by its trees. Dartmouth has an active program of forest stewardship that includes care and maintenance of the many species and varieties of trees on the campus, as well as on other lands owned by the College.
In Hanover, College Arborist David DiBenedetto keeps a close, regular watch on the trees. During the growing season, DiBenedetto particularly surveys the College’s stately elms twice weekly, looking for yellowing and wilting leaves, the first signs that Dutch elm disease has caused a section of the tree's circulatory system to fail. College arborists respond by pruning as far back as needed to remove infected wood. That tree then joins the list of those receiving therapeutic treatments of fungicide.
Dartmouth's tree nursery, where several dozen young, disease-resistant elms are added about every other year, is a visible sign of the College's commitment to the tree, as is Dartmouth's master plan, which designates the elm as the tree for Baker Lawn. The Town of Hanover is also planting elms. Trees that grow in the right-of-way along town streets are managed by the Town.
While the elms get special attention from DiBenedetto and the arborists, similar care is afforded to other species of trees as well.
In the Second College Grant, a 27,000-acre parcel owned by the College in northern New Hampshire, College Forester Kevin Evans oversees a vigorous forest management plan, marking individual trees for cutting, leaving behind tall and healthy young trees in the logged-over areas, and working in cooperation with New Hampshire Fish and Game to upgrade wildlife habitat. Much of the newer furniture on campus comes from wood harvested in the Grant.
There is also an active project of tree replacement started by the Class of 1950 but now overseen by the Class of 2000.
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