The Tree Farm
In 2010, Luke and Jer gave their father Phil 10 bare root saplings for his birthday. This was the beginning of a serious investment into the health, diversity, and authenticity of our forest land. That summer marked the farm's most significant physical change in over a decade, when John O'Brien first helped us make something of our land.
Upgrades have come mainly in the planting of sapplings, all of which have a defined role for the future. Norway Spruce (Picea abies) and Austrian Pine (Pinus nigra) have been planted along the border and dubbed the W. W. Piper Line, in memory of our grandfather, Withrop Walker Piper. A proud line of Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum) has been planted and will be the foundation of a sugarbush from which we will produce our own syrup. Assotred shade trees, like the American Basswood (Tilia americana), English Walnut Juglans regia), Red Oak (Quercus rubra) and American Beech (Fagus grandifolia) will line the drive, winding through what is currently a horse pasture to the site of the new house.
One of our main goals is the re-population of native trees that have either been harvested out or have died out due to invasive species, foreign disease, or poor forest management. Elms, walnuts, sugar maples, sweet birches, and American plums have been selected specifically because these once native New Hampshire species have long since become rare in our forests. We try to avoid ornamental trees (I.e.: Norway Maple (Acer platanoides)) that can out-compete the native species.
Upgrades have come mainly in the planting of sapplings, all of which have a defined role for the future. Norway Spruce (Picea abies) and Austrian Pine (Pinus nigra) have been planted along the border and dubbed the W. W. Piper Line, in memory of our grandfather, Withrop Walker Piper. A proud line of Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum) has been planted and will be the foundation of a sugarbush from which we will produce our own syrup. Assotred shade trees, like the American Basswood (Tilia americana), English Walnut Juglans regia), Red Oak (Quercus rubra) and American Beech (Fagus grandifolia) will line the drive, winding through what is currently a horse pasture to the site of the new house.
One of our main goals is the re-population of native trees that have either been harvested out or have died out due to invasive species, foreign disease, or poor forest management. Elms, walnuts, sugar maples, sweet birches, and American plums have been selected specifically because these once native New Hampshire species have long since become rare in our forests. We try to avoid ornamental trees (I.e.: Norway Maple (Acer platanoides)) that can out-compete the native species.
Our forest best supports White pine, Red oak, and Yellow birch. We manage for healthy, diverse stands of these trees and cull the less valuable beech, red maple, hemlock, spruce, and white (paper) birch. The major contributing factors that determine the dominant species in a forest are soil type, Ph, and climate. In Enfield, we have a sandy loam, which means the texture of our soils is "sandy" and has equal parts of sand, silt, and loam. The Ph in our area is above average in terms of acidity. While sandy loam soils are not very fertile, they do drain well. Red oak, White pine, and Yellow birch all happen to thrive on this type of soil type. We are in a bit of what is called a "micro-climate", and we find that our winters are slightly colder and slightly longer than our surrounding area. Essentially, we are in a 3 to a 3/4 zone.
As with any tree farm, our goals are long term. Many of the trees we are planting today will be best enjoyed by future generations. With this in mind, we have paid special attention the treatment and care of all our trees, regardless of their age. |
