Bi-Weekly Newsletter

​A few announcements: The station will be closed Wednesday, September 13 and Friday, September 15. Also, don't forget the Open House scheduled for Sunday, September 17- the dedication of the Lee Williams Family Colonial Shed and a cookout for our members and donors-  in appreciation. Twelve-thirty to four- thirty. New memberships will be available at the door. Also, the Society is planning an Open House for Sunday, October 22, that will focus on "Growing Up in Easton in the '50's, '60's and '70's".  We are looking for 'artifacts' from those decades. If you have items we can display please notify the Society at  [email protected] or email me at [email protected]. Thank you in advance!
 

     To everything – turn, turn, turn

     There is a season – turn, turn, turn
These lyrics, written in 1959 by Pete Seeger, came to mind as I finished my recent walk at Wheaton Farm. As soon as late August, early September, the natural world is already, in quiet, barely discernible ways, signaling a turn of season. Whether it’s the color of berries, the turn of a leaf, or an abundance of mushrooms, little hints are everywhere

​Most of the land that makes up Wheaton Farm Management Area was once agricultural land. It is named for Daniel Wheaton (1767-1841) whose house still stands at 519 Bay Road and was the first major purchase of Easton’s Conservation Commission. Many Easton citizens worked very hard to save Wheaton Farm from development and in May of 1967 the first acquisition of land was officially dedicated.

During the mid-sixties Conservation Commission members fought to procure Wheaton Farm and to preserve it as a green space. Serving on the commission (1965, 1966, 1967) were Alice B. McCarthy, Raymond Taylor, John Freitas, Elizabeth Ames, Charles Willis, and Clifford Grant. Other individuals instrumental in acquiring Wheaton Farm include Evelyn C. White, Virginia Reusch, and John E. Grant. Today, the land area comprising the Wheaton Farm Management Area is greater than Borderland State Park. 

At the start of the trails off Bay Road is a pollinator garden. Shortly after I began walking, this butterfly (below) greeted me and hung around long enough for me to take its picture. Trash bags are conveniently located a bit further along for dog walkers. There are several different trails of varying length.

​My butterfly friend.

Also located at Wheaton Farm, since 2019, is the Ed Hands Community Garden, which makes garden plots available to community members. The plots here are crammed full of produce and flowers at the end of August. In this especially rainy summer, many vegetables are ripening late. On other parts of the property Langwater Farms has grown produce since 2014. Hikers and walkers (many with dogs) enjoy the property; the Bay Circuit Trail passes through, and hunting is allowed in season. Daniel Wheaton’s old farm serves new purposes. I’m sure the current residents of Easton appreciate their fellow citizens’ foresight and their commitment to land conservation that began decades ago.

More mushrooms.

Ed Hands Community Garden.
Tomatoes rot in the compost pile
Nearby, a rusted watering can,
Broken chair and a red wheelbarrow
Reminisce about the harvest


Anne Wooster Drury

[email protected]
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