Litchfield Hills Audubon - Wigwam Brook Back-Cross Orchard 
| Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 |
| Over the next nine months John Baker and Bill Adamsen worked to define the ideal siting at the Wigwam Brook property. John got the contracts in place for land clearing and site preparation and Bill developed a fencing plan designed to protect the young trees from deer and beaver. The fence plan went through numerous iterations as we tried to find a common ground that met the management objectives as well as keeping the price in alignment with expectations. The partnership was very fortunate to be supported in its efforts by a wide range of organizations. Thanks especially to the NRCS who provided consulting and support to ensure that we designed a fence that could meet their expectations for durability. We could not have built the fence currently in place without NRCS assistance. |  [click for larger photo] |
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May 8th, 2010 eighteen volunteers from several organizations descended on the orchard site to plant over 200 fourth generation back-cross (15/16ths American chestnut) chestnut some of which originated from trees identified and pollinated last year in the Litchfield area. Quoted in the Waterbury-Republican LHAS Member John Baker said, "We provide the land, they (The American Chestnut Foundation) provide the seeds and fertilizer." |
| We're really proud of the partnership between the CT Chapter of The American Chestnut Foundation and the Litchfield Hills Audubon Society. This orchard site and the site managers proved their mettle by recording stupendous growth in their test orchard in 2009. The terrific results convinced us they would be successful growing the valuable back-cross trees. |  [click for larger photo] |
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The site is designed to hold up to four lines of back-cross trees. That could be five-hundred trees or possibly even more. The trees are planted in rows fifteen feet apart - wide enough to allow equipment such as a mower or bucket truck to drive the rows. Within the rows the trees are spaced at seven foot intervals. A clever idea by the Audubon members was to replace some of the trees with Bluebird houses. The site will remain fairly open for several years as the trees are established. The trees and fence provide sites for the birds to perch. |
