A section of Clear Creek State Forest in western Pennsylvania has been inducted into the Old-Growth Forest Network, which tallies these rare ecosystems across the country.
The 20-acre old-growth stand of eastern hemlocks and hardwoods, including white and red oak, is part of the 201-acre McKeever Tract, in Mercer County. It joins 29 other parcels of Pennsylvania forests already in the Network.
What it looks like
It is believed that the stand was originally cut for timber by European settlers in the 19th century. But it wasn’t cut a second time, unlike much of Pennsylvania forests, presumably because it sits in a rocky ravine.
Jake Scheib, assistant manager for the Clear Creek Forest District, said the trees, between 150-170 years old, classify the stand as a younger old-growth forest.
“It’s just edging sort of near [being] an old-growth stand,” Scheib said. “But, it has the components and it’s well on its way. So we think that it’s going to be a good site to show the public, to provide a different diversity than we normally have on some of our other stands.”
Scheib said old-growth forests have characteristics such as shade-loving trees like hemlocks and beech and a variety of mosses. Older hemlocks also provide cover for animals like white-tailed deer in the winter and additional thermal cover for species.
What is the Old-Growth Forest Network?
The Old-Growth Forest Network was founded in 2012 with a goal of creating a national network of protected old-growth forests. It currently includes over 185 forests across 32 states.
Forests inducted into the Network have a lack of significant human disturbance or management activities over an extended period of time, according to its website. This can include minimal logging, clearing, or other intensive human activities that disrupt the natural processes.
Keeping the trees healthy
Since there will be minimal logging, the Mercer County stand won’t be harvested for timber, said Scheib. Crews will monitor the forest for diseases and invasive species.
If these diseases or invasive species were to occur, they would backpack into the old-growth stand to use hand-applied treatments for pests to minimize the use of mechanized treatments in the area.
“We try to limit the disturbance, really to try to keep the impact of some of the non-native species from influencing the stand,” he said.
At this stage, Scheib said the old-growth stand is healthy, and the crew will continue to monitor its condition.
How the public can experience it
The public can access the old-growth track through the Goddard-McKeever Trail. This connects the McKeever tract to the Clear Creek State Forest and Maurice K. Goddard State Park.
On the trail, hikers will find a bridge at McCutcheon Run leading to a path that ends at a bench overlooking the forest perimeter.
There, viewers can spot a variety of animals in the area including whitetail deer, turkeys, and various songbirds.
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