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Behold the Hackberry!

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The Society of Municipal Arborists recently announced its 2020 Tree of the Year. It’s the Hackberry (Celtis occidentalis). This tree is related to the American Elm and upon the introduction of Dutch Elm Disease, the Hackberry became a very popular substitute.

According to the US Department of Agriculture’s website, the common hackberry varies in size from a shrub to a tree exceeding 100’ in height. So why are we telling you about this? It just so happens that we have a remarkable specimen hackberry at Kirkwood Preserve, right at the corner of Goshen and Grubbs Mill Roads.

Measuring a leader on the Hackberry – this one is 8’9″

It is definitely larger than most hackberries at an estimated 70’ tall. Its girth is equally remarkable, with its trunk measuring roughly 15’ in circumference at the base and with three leaders measuring 6’5”, 8’9” and 6’7”. As for the age, it’s hard to estimate without looking at the rings. Hackberries are a faster-growing tree. This specimen is also out in the open (as opposed to being in a forest), which can further increase its rate of growth.

Hackberries are wonderful shade trees. They are also adaptable to a wide range of soil types and tolerate heat, drought, salt spray, wind, ice and even short-term flooding. All of those characteristics make it a great urban tree. But it’s equally well-suited to living on preserved land! As a bonus, the hackberry provides food for birds and small mammals.

Looking up – you can see the beautiful fissured bark

So, next time you’re out, stop by Kirkwood Preserve and take a look at our specimen hackberry. It’s particularly beautiful in summertime when its deep green foliage is on display. But winter offers you a chance to see its complex structure and deeply textured bark.

The Willistown Conservation Trust Staff and Trustees Mourn a Hero of the Countryside

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IN MEMORIAM: MRS. J. MAXWELL R. (BETTY) MORAN

August 7, 1930 – January 23, 2020

The Willistown countryside lost one of its greatest heroes on January 23, 2020, when Betty Moran passed away. She left a legacy of generosity, support for many worthy causes, close friendships, love of good times, a competitive spirit, and a passionate dedication to protecting the open spaces that she loved.

Willistown was blessed to have Betty as a champion and lover of its equestrian tradition and the conserved land that makes those activities possible to this day. Over the past 40 years, she played a significant role in helping maintain its rural character, participating in numerous land protection partnerships that saved beautiful parcels of land from development.

In 1980, Betty supported our first community partnership to acquire the “Hundred Acre Field”. She went on to become a lead investor in 14 additional partnerships to purchase, preserve and resell properties that would otherwise have succumbed to development, resulting in over 2,000 acres in the Willistown area conserved with Betty’s direct support.

The Willistown countryside simply would not look the way it does today without Betty. Executive Director Bonnie Van Alen attributes this to Betty’s dedication, saying, “In my 40 years of knowing Betty, she never said ‘no’ when asked to participate in an effort to save a beautiful property from development, including placing conservation easements on her own Brushwood and Bryn Clovis properties.”

The staff and Trustees of Willistown Conservation Trust are grateful for Betty’s insights, leadership and generosity during the time she served as a board member. We take comfort knowing that the more than 7,500 conserved acres of rolling fields, mature woodlands and stream valleys of the Willistown countryside will be a lasting part of her legacy forever.

What 40 Years of Conserving Land Looks Like

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For over 40 years, the Trust has been protecting land in the Willistown area. As we head into 2020, the Trust is continuing to grow that protected land. With highly qualified staff and technical support from our partners in the community, the Trust identifies strategic properties, works with landowners, prepares proposals, and negotiates agreements to protect those lands.

You can see the progress we have made by using our interactive story map below. Drag the slider to see how protected lands have grown in the last four decades.

Land protection begins with a willing land owner who agrees to permanently protect their land from development, while retaining ownership of the land. If you are interested in learning about the many benefits of protecting your land, please send me an email or give me a call at 610.353.2562, ext. 11. I would be happy to sit down with you to discuss.

12.7 More Acres Conserved Forever

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The map of permanently conserved land in the Willistown area just got a little greener, thanks to Lawrie Harris. Lawrie donated a Legacy Conservation Easement to the Trust on November 11, 2019, protecting her 12.7 acres on Twinbrook Road from development forever. Located on Twinbrook Road in Easttown Township, in what is known as the Leopard Tract, the gently sloping site is primarily wooded and features a small tributary to Crum Creek named Grubb Mill Run. Several acres of open meadow area surrounds Lawrie’s home and garage, the only structures on the property.

The easement will limit further subdivision of the property and will protect its natural features that serve as important wildlife habitat, support the surrounding ecosystem and contribute to scenic views along Twinbrook Road. The easement defines most of the property as Sensitive Riparian Area, which include wetlands, hydric soils and floodplain, and limits the amount of disturbance allowed in these areas.

Lawrie shares her late husband Jay’s passion for the environment, and wants to conserve the land to ensure it will stay just as it is today, so both people and wildlife can enjoy it forever. Her decision to donate the easement was prompted, in part, by neighbors Kate and Ben Etherington’s recent decision to do the same. We are grateful to Lawrie for her foresight and generosity.

“I want to be absolutely certain that future owners will keep this property intact and take care of the stream and woodland. We don’t have many places like this left and we need to preserve them,” said Lawrie. “And the process of working with the Trust has been easy and enjoyable. Willistown Conservation Trust has a 40-year legacy of protecting land in our area.”

When you look at a the Trust’s protected lands map, you see a mosaic of open space comprising preserved parcels of all sizes – from hundreds of acres to just a few. And in an era when conserving habitat, protecting the quality of our water supply, and offsetting the impact of human activity is so vital, every acre counts.

We developed Legacy Easements, like the one that protects Lawrie’s land, specifically so owners of smaller parcels of land could protect their land in perpetuity. Legacy Easements are generally less complicated than traditional ones and can be tailored to protect features of an owner’s property that are personally and/or environmentally significant.

Thank you Lawrie, another hero of our countryside!

12.7 More Acres!

By

The map of permanently conserved land in the Willistown area just got a little greener, thanks to Lawrie Harris. Lawrie donated a Legacy Conservation Easement to the Trust on November 11, 2019, protecting her 12.7 acres on Twinbrook Road from development forever. Located on Twinbrook Road in Easttown Township, in what is known as the Leopard Tract, the gently sloping site is primarily wooded and features a small tributary to Crum Creek named Grubb Mill Run. Several acres of open meadow area surrounds Lawrie’s home and garage, the only structures on the property.

The easement will limit further subdivision of the property and will protect the natural features of the property that serve as important wildlife habitat, support the surrounding ecosystem and contribute to scenic views along Twinbrook Road. The easement defines most of the property as Sensitive Riparian Area, which include wetlands, hydric soils and floodplain, and limits the amount of disturbance allowed in these areas.

Lawrie shares her late husband Jay’s passion for the environment, and wants to conserve the land to ensure it will stay just as it is today, so both people and wildlife can enjoy it forever. Her decision to donate the easement was prompted, in part, by neighbors Kate and Ben Etherington’s recent decision to do the same. We are grateful to Lawrie for her foresight and generosity.

“I want to be absolutely certain that future owners will keep this property intact and take care of the stream and woodland. We don’t have many places like this left and we need to preserve them,” said Lawrie. “And the process of working with the Trust has been easy and enjoyable. Willistown Conservation Trust has a 40-year legacy of protecting land in our area.”

When you look at a the Trust’s protected lands map, you see a mosaic of open space comprising preserved parcels of all sizes – from hundreds of acres to just a few. And in an era when conserving habitat, protecting the quality of our water supply, and offsetting the impact of human activity is so vital, every acre counts.

We developed Legacy Easements, like the one that protects Lawrie’s land, specifically so owners of smaller parcels of land could protect their land in perpetuity. Legacy Easements are generally less complicated than traditional ones and can be tailored to protect features of an owner’s property that are personally and/or environmentally significant.

Thank you Lawrie, another hero of our countryside!