Joan Maloof, author of the delightful book Treepedia: A Brief Compendium of Arboreal Lore, will speak on the wooded grounds of Veblen House in Herrontown Woods, on Friday, Sept. 24 at 6pm. The Friends of Herrontown Woods is excited to be hosting the event, which is sponsored by the Princeton Environmental Film Festival.
Wednesday, September 15, 2021
Treepedia Author to Speak at Veblen House in Herrontown Woods
Joan Maloof, author of the delightful book Treepedia: A Brief Compendium of Arboreal Lore, will speak on the wooded grounds of Veblen House in Herrontown Woods, on Friday, Sept. 24 at 6pm. The Friends of Herrontown Woods is excited to be hosting the event, which is sponsored by the Princeton Environmental Film Festival.
Saturday, August 14, 2021
"Among Trees" a Great Step FOHWard
A remarkable community act took place next to Veblen House this past month. Herrontown Woods has always sat quietly on the outskirts of Princeton, beyond many people's awareness, but on July 15,
more than 100 people found their way to Herrontown Woods on the same enchanted evening. Chances are, that means another 50 or so were orbiting somewhere in the vicinity, searching but not quite finding this elusive destination. The record breaking congregation came together in response to the vision and talent of two professional actors, Vivia Font and Ben Steinfeld, who had assembled the scripts and performers for an evening of poetry, prose, and locally sourced music, aptly entitled Among Trees. Much of the script came from submissions by local writers, the inspired readings of which were interspersed with a broad array of musical vignettes.Adding greatly to the success of the event was the collaboration of the Princeton Public Library, whose public programming librarian Janie Hermann did so much to promote the event. Some of her photos are included in this post.
Among Trees would not have come to pass if not for a chance encounter at the Small World cafe on Nassau St, where the Friends of Herrontown Woods' president and vice-president, Steve Hiltner and Pallavi Nuka, happened to be meeting to discuss Veblen House. At the next table over, Ben and Vivia were meeting to brainstorm ideas for theater performances in Princeton. Steve, having taken one of Ben's Shakespeare workshops, said hello, and everything followed from that. Small World contributed refreshing drinks for the event as well.
A number of the performers have connections to the university. John Burkhalter is subsciptions manager for PU concerts by day, player of 18th century instrumental music by night.
Monica Mugan and Beth Meyers formed the duo Damsel after becoming neighbors in Princeton. Both have partners associated with the university, and it's interesting to read that Monica and her partner Dan Trueman have been heavily influenced by Norwegian folk music, including use of a hardanger fiddle--a national instrument of Norway that originated not far from the Valdres Valley, where Oswald Veblen's grandparents lived before immigrating to America.The central Norwegian regions of Hallingdal, Valdres, and Telemark have long been known for their rich concentration of folk musicians. With proximity to the Hardanger plateau, this region has a special claim on one of the most “Norwegian” parts of Norway’s cultural inheritance, the Hardanger fiddle.
Fiona Tyndall sang a lovely Irish ballad, Blooming Heather, accompanied by Ben.
Percussionist Mika Godbole performed a fascinating "speaking percussion" work combining poetry and percussion, using differently toned flower pots, entitled "To the Earth" by Frederic Rzewski.
It takes great skill and training to read a text while connecting fully with the audience. Actors Ben, Vivia, and Katharine Powell Roman handled this beautifully. One particularly moving reading was of Robert Frost's poem "Birches", read by Katharine and her son.
The stage for this performance, a lawn next to Veblen House, was years in the setting. The house has sat empty since 1998, and through decades of neglect the grounds had become overgrown with invasive shrubs and vines, all of which began getting cleared by Kurt and Sally Tazelaar and other FOHW volunteers starting in 2013, revealing a tranquil and beautiful setting. Andrew Thornton, seen setting up a garden torch behind the stage, has been in many ways the keeper and fashioner of the grounds, both at Veblen House and the Barden.Friday, August 6, 2021
Yoga and Habitat Next to Veblen House
A greenheaded coneflower blooming in front of a birdhouse that a girlscout troop made--it's all positive, nurturing, like a yoga class.
Hanging out among the wildflowers has other benefits, like witnessing a clearwing moth close up, sipping nectar from this golfball-like congregation of buttonbush flowers,
Thursday, July 15, 2021
"Among Trees" -- Theatrical Event Tonight, July 15, 7pm
The event is free, with any donations going to the Friends of Herrontown Woods. The programming has been put together by professional actors Vivia Font and Ben Steinfeld. Ben is with Fiasco Theater and Vivia has connections to the Lewis Center for the Arts. The Princeton Public Library is co-sponsoring the event, and Small World Coffee will provide a refreshing beverage.
PARKING: There are two parking lots, with the closest being at 452 Herrontown Road. Take Snowden Lane to the end, go left on Herrontown Road, and take the first left into the gravel driveway. Parking at the main parking lot off Snowden involves a five minute walk up the orange trail to the Veblen House.
Bugs haven't been too bad this year, but some bug spray could be useful. We're providing chairs, but bring your own if you want.
Sunday, June 27, 2021
More Chainsaw Artistry, Thanks to Victorino
Sometimes the beautiful trunks of fallen trees become beautiful boards, cut by eye with the chainsaw. These he thought we could use as planks for a boardwalk, but they look too good for that. Benches, maybe?
Sunday, June 20, 2021
A Week of Magical Moments at the Gazebo
The leadup to a magical moment can seem mundane enough: a ladder leaned against the gazebo at the Barden at Herrontown Woods. The Barden, short for Botanical ARt garDEN, has become magical in and of itself, but this past week had a series of magical moments.
On Friday, a solar panel was mounted on the roof of the gazebo, thanks to Princeton architecture professor Forrest Meggers.When one of them asked me to play Ode To Joy, I figured the parents were needing to get going, so I led the kids down the Barden path to the parking lot, playing Ode to Joy like a pied piper. In the parking lot, we jammed for awhile, the kids using sticks to beat out rhythms.
Thursday, June 17, 2021
EVENT: Yoga with Gemma, Saturday, June 19
Saturday, June 12, 2021
The Many Gifts of Girl Scout Troop 71837
Herrontown Woods was the recipient this year of what surely is one of the most ambitious and multifaceted efforts by a girl scout troop to have a beneficial impact on a nature preserve. Girl Scout Troop 71837, with girls 10-11 years old led by Danielle Rollmann and Heather Harnley, contacted the Friends of Herrontown Woods back in August of 2020. Since then, they have contributed their time and effort to the preserve in many ways.
For starters, during a remarkable spring workday, they swept the parking lot area clean of garlic mustard--an invasive species that spreads aggressively if not pulled up before it goes to seed.
They were fascinated by the big skunk cabbage leaves along the stream, and took a break to check out the little frog pond at the Barden.With guidance from their leaders, they then quickly became adept at using power tools, drilling holes and setting screws in repurposed wood to construct boardwalks for wet spots on our trails.
Another initiative spurred by the girl scouts' involvement was a new trail map for Herrontown Woods. The girls walked the trails with GPS tracking software, then sent the files to graphic artist Alison Carver, who worked with the girl scouts and FOHW to create a beautiful and detailed new map. Troop funds paid for the first 500 copies.
The scouts also painted new trail markers to greatly aid hikers in finding their way through the preserve. In the photo, you can see remnants of yellow paint, very possibly from when another girl scout troop helped mark trails, many decades ago,Saturday, May 29, 2021
Outdoor Yoga with Gemma at Herrontown Woods, June 5, 1-2pm
Outdoor Yoga with Gemma at Herrontown Woods -- This is a free event. Any class donations "will support Friends of Herrontown Woods' ongoing efforts to create a place of restoration and growth for the Princeton community." The class will take place next to Veblen House. Info about location and parking is on the registration page.