In the Weeds

When our dad bought Sunshine Springs Farm in 1983 it was being grazed by cattle. Rolling hills of pasture land were dotted with natural springs and limestone outcroppings. A small orchard behind the house, a smattering of trees, and a few rows of boxwood bushes were the only large plants below Sugarloaf Mountain. In the 1980s, Dad planted some white pines as a windbreak on the west side of the house. He dug a pond in the lowland to catch the overflowing spring water, planted some pines on the hill, and trees along the banks to control erosion. Dad rented out most of the fields for hay and feed corn production, but the land he maintained was mowed and brush-hogged regularly to keep things under control. He had a special mower or tool for every area. I remember him mowing and weed-eating every weekend and occasionally getting out the Case “Putt Putt” Tractor to pull the brush hog through the larger fields. He had a smaller mower deck he pulled behind his Sears lawn tractor to maintain the sides of the quarter mile of driveway. Thistles were taken care of with a sickle.

Sunshine Springs Farm circa 1940

The "Putt Putt" tractor was named for the sound the hinged muffler cap would make as it danced above the exhaust pipe.

The Case tractor was later only fired up to plow snow from the driveway, and eventually was retired to the barn, where it still sits today. The pull-behind mower deck met its demise along the driveway one summer when I was in college, and when I came home, I had to help lift it into the bed of the big red truck to haul it away. That Sears lawn tractor got parked in the barn to collect dust and was finally auctioned off this summer. These tools were never replaced, nor was help called in to take over their tasks. I can’t help but think as every machine met its end, a little bit of ambition died with it.

Downed trees, piles of rubble, old farm equipment left from previous farmers, and collapsed, rotting fences became nurseries for volunteer plants. Over time, trees and shrubs appeared around building foundations (and even inside a few). Once-grassy areas, now shaded by trees, turned to mud and invited whatever seeds floated by to take root. The landscape at the farm was being reclaimed by the land — but not the native land. Invasive plants were taking advantage of years of neglect, and when we offered to help, we were always met with “I just need to get caught up”.

We finally stopped waiting for permission to help in 2018 and started showing up unannounced with saws and trimmers to at least minimize the Grey Gardens effect and make it safe for Dad to navigate the driveway, walkway, and stairs. Dad would shuffle out onto the porch in his sock feet and point out what we had missed, teasing us for our lack of skill. He seemed to appreciate the help, but would have never asked for it. He just had to “get caught up”. Today, we are quickly learning that we cannot get “caught up” without major interventions, professional guidance, and heavy equipment. We are in the weeds.

If there isn't a plan to replace removed plants, cover it up so invasives don't move in

The farm went from a strict management practice of mowing, weeding, and spraying, to a stage of absolute and utter neglect. Since inheriting the farm in 2021, we have done our best to remove the plants that were direct threats to the historic buildings. But we learned that removing one plant can invite others to take root if you don’t have a plan. When your whole strategy is playing defense and spending all your energy fighting the invasives and you stop, the invasives are going to win. I’m hoping we can play a little offense moving forward and create a robust ecosystem of native plants that will thrive and prevent the invasives from taking root again. 

Caroline marches into battle at the farm, armed with flagging tape, spray paint, clippers and a pruning saw

I see unused fences, pieces of broken concrete, and abandoned equipment as invitations for invasives to take advantage. Get them out of here! Our plan is to manually remove the worst offenders (on our land: multiflora rose, japanese barberry, japanese honeysuckle, bamboo, autumn olive, privet, tree of heaven) and replace them with hardy native species. We also need to remove all the hazards that allow the nasties to take root and keep us from safely managing them (rubble piles, abandoned farm equipment, collapsed fences, broken concrete slabs). We will need to stay on top of it for the first few years to make sure our natives stand a chance, but hopefully we can get to the point where the native plants work with us to fight the invasives and we aren’t constantly battling the land.