DEERING’S BIGGEST TREES

In 1980 a search was made to locate the biggest trees of each species in our town.

About 100 trees were entered in this ‘contest.’ They represented 31 species in 21 genera.

The Deering Association and the Deering Conservation Commission are now trying to relocate these big, old trees. Unfortunately, 1980 was well before the age of GPS devices and the information about where the trees were located in 1980 is in most cases not precise, or is lacking entirely.

Maybe you know where some of these trees are?

Following is a list of the largest trees of each species in Deering. A full list can be downloaded from:

Tree
Latin name / Tree
common name / DBH 1980
(inch) / DBH 2017
(inch) / LOCATION / REPORTER
Abies
balsamea / Balsam fir / - / 12.7 / Spiller’s swamp / Gary Samuels
Acer rubrum / Red maple / 54.1 / near Bartlett Farm on old Henniker Rd, on left side. / Bartlett
Acer saccharinum / Silver maple / 40.1 / on roadside of cemetery near pond, accessible from rt 149 / Jarvis
Acer saccharum / Sugar Maple, hard maple / 76.2 / dead / Tourci property / Henry Baldwin
Acer saccharum / Sugar Maple, hard maple / 76.2 / Whitney
Acer saccharum / Sugar Maple, hard maple / - / 76.2 / E. Deering Rd., map 227:22. Thyng / Peter Beard/GJ Samuels
Betula alleganiensis / Yellow birch / 42.7 / Audubon / Corey
Betula lenta / Black birch / 31.2 / Abernethy (?Baldwin Rd.) / Corey
Betula papyrifera / Paper birch / 89 / ? / Dutton
Cryptomeria japonica / Japanese cedar / 11.5 / ? (possibly Cake Rd.) / Lincoln
Fagus grandifolia / American beech / 31.7
dead / Baldwin Rd. / Abernethy
Fagus grandifolia / American beech / - / 72 / Baldwin Rd., old Abernethy property at lake edge / Larry Sunderland
Fagus grandifolia / American beech / - / 72 (est.) / Baldwin Rd., old Abernethy property at lake edge / Larry Sunderland
Fagus sylvatica / Weeping beech / 22.9 / Lincoln property (?Cake Rd.) / Leslie N. Corey
Fagus sylvatica / Weeping beech / - / 25.8 / Falls Rd., Beatrice Hunter home / G.J. Samuels
Fagus sylvatica / Purple beech / 48.7 / Homestead / Robert Compton
Fraxinus ameriana / American ash / 51 / ? / Dawson
Ginko biloba / Ginko / 11.1 / Homestead / Robert Compton
Juglans cinerea / butternut / 27 (in 1985 = 27.7”) / V. Baghdoyan property,
in back of Lazy Brown's old house foundation / Ruth Jarvis
Larix decidua / European larch / 20 / Vincent tract (?T. Garfall location)
Larix laricina / American larch, tamarac / 16.5 / 19.4 / Jarvis property at edge of wetland / Charles Jarvis
Liriodendron tulipifera / Tulip poplar / 28.7 / AppletonCemetery / Corey
Nyssa sylvatica / Black gum / - / 27.2 / Spiller’s swamp / Gary Samuels
Ostrya virginiana / American hop-hornbeam / 12 / E side of Deering Reservoir, Westward continuat9on of Farrell Hill Rd., Franzeen property / E.F. Franzeen
Picea pungens / Colorado blue spruce / 19 / (?R.T.) Young property / (?R.T.) Young
Picea engelmannii / Engelmann spruce / 15.8 / Clement Hill Rd. / R.T. Young
Picea abies / Norway spruce / 23 / ? Cake Rd. (Lincoln property) / Corey
Picea rubens / Red spruce / 19 / ? / Baldwin
Pinus resinosa / Red pine / 24.8 / land formerly owned by Howard Whitney, near Vincent Tract / Tony Garfall
Pinus strobus / White pine / 43 / ? / Dawson
Pinus strobus / White pine (‘Murder Tree’) / 38.9 / 44.6 / North Deering Rd. Nr. Pond Rd at cellar hole / Charles & Ruth Jarvis
Populus alba / White poplar / 72 / 23 / On S side of N Deering Rd., across from burned out house, Vzzken Baghdoyan / Ruth Jarvis
Populus balsamifera / Balsam poplar / 29.9 / McLauchlin Property / Aucoin
Populus grandentata / Big tooth aspen / 15.1 / 19.4 / Jarvis property / Jarvis
Populus tremula / White poplar / 23.3 (dead) / North Rd.,
near old barn foundation of Lazy (Baghdoian property) / Jarvis
Populus tremuloides / Quaking aspen / 16.9 / Whitney property / Baldwin
Pseudotsuga menziesii / Douglas fir / 12.2 / ? / Leo Miller
Quercus alba / White oak / Deuse property / Bruce
Quercus rubra / Red oak / 58.5 / 63.7 / SPNHF property,
Behind burned out house on N side of N. Deering Rd, formerly Vazken Baghdoyan property / Ruth Jarvis
Syringia reticulata / Japanese lilac / 27.7 / Homestead / Robert Compton
Thuja occidentalis / Northern white cedar, arborvitae / 32.2 / Conference center / Corey
Tilia ? americana / Amerian basswood, linden / 29.9 / Off Mica Mind Rd., Dawson property / Ruth Jarvis
Tsuga canadensis / Hemlock / 43.5 / ?Clement Hill Rd., Dawson property / Dawson and Waters
Ulmus americana / American elm / 49.7 (dead) / Nugent Home accessible from Reservoir Rd. / B. Nugent
Ulmus americana / American elm / 41.1 / ? / W. Dutton
38.5 / North Deering Road, Cecil Chappell property / Cecil Chappell