Stout Family Fields is a 13.3-acre TRLC parcel at the end of Stone Hill Road in Bloomfield.
There is a small wetland copse that we call “The Island” in the southwest part of the field. It was surrounded by many invasive trees, shrubs and vines that were covering the native trees and plants in the interior. Invasive common buckthorn trees were particularly abundant. In the summer of 2023 our volunteers got to work, clearing out the autumn olive trees and bittersweet vines that had overtaken the native shagbark hickory, butternut, and sugar maple trees around the island.
On a Saturday in early August our “Break Glass in Case of Emergency Guy” felled the bulk of the common buckthorn trees that filled the interior of the island and, after 14 more work parties, we had cleared most of the buckthorn and were ready to restore the island’s interior to native grassland and shrubs.
TRLC got a grant from the Hartford Audubon Society in the spring of 2024, and we planted high bush blueberry, winterberry, swamp azalea, purple aster, and ironweed. We followed that up by planting small plots with native grass and wildflower seeds. We uncovered several green ash trees and winterberry bushes from under the bittersweet, and this past summer we noticed several white turtleheads in bloom, as well.
We now have a thriving grass and shrub habitat in the island that can better support and shelter wildlife.
