A Greenway on the Banks of Big Timber Creek in Deptford Township
upcoming events
LEARN HOW TO EXTEND YOUR GARDENING SEASON INTO FALL AND WINTER ON TUESDAY, OCTOBER 16,
Think you can't garden in the winter in New Jersey? Think again! Learn how to extend your season to provide fresh greens and tasteful tidbits both outdoors and in. Jessica Ferguson, of Woodbury, will introduce you to Winter Gardening at Auletto’s Caterers on Tuesday, October 16. She will be the guest speaker at Old Pine Farm Natural Lands Trust annual meeting. There will be a brief business meeting at 6:30 p.m. following by refreshments and the guest speaker.
Jessica Ferguson is a city girl turned country. Her part-time homestead currently includes chickens and bees on purpose plus a groundhog and a family of skunks, not-so-on-purpose. Her year-round gardens provide toppings and side salads for Pizza Fridays as well as the occasional bounty for preserving. She is an advocate for slow food, humane farm animal treatment, backyard hens, farmland preservation, wild space preservation, seed saving, CSAs and co-ops, food sovereignty, and ending food waste.
Auletto’s Caterers is located at 1849 Cooper Street, Deptford with plenty of free parking. For Information about Old Pine Farm, please check our website www.oldpinefarm.org or our Facebook page or call 856-340-3208.
MEMORIAL TREE PLANTING CEREMONY SUNDAY, OCTOBER 21, FOR TWO TRUSTEES OF OLD PINE FARM
Family, friends and land trust members are invited to a memorial tree planting ceremony on Sunday, October 21, at 1:00 p.m. to honor Millie Cleary and Pauline Jonas, two beloved longtime members and trustees of Old Pine Farm Natural Lands Trust in the Blackwood Terrace section of Deptford Township.
Millie served as secretary for the board of trustees for 11 years as well as volunteering her time for land trust projects. She was an artist and designed the logo for the land trust. She was a staunch environmentalist and a member of the Gloucester County Nature Club. A dogwood tree will be planted in her memory.
Pauline was the founder of the Deptford Galleria, the state’s first municipal art gallery in Deptford Township. She created The Living Arts Club to provide cultural trips for the community, and in her free time, she showed art films to local senior centers. She was in charge of posting press releases to the media for upcoming events at Old Pine Farm, and she served as liaison between Old Pine Farm and the Deptford Township Council. A Juneberry tree will be planted in her memory.
Please meet at the Willoughby House at the end of Pine Avenue, off Good Intent Road in Blackwood Terrace, or you can put "340 Pine Avenue, Deptford" into your favorite mapping service. Please check our Facebook for changes and directions. Information and questions please call Joan at 856-340-3208.
BURNED BOWL MAKING IS SUBJECT OF TALK AT WALK IN THE WILD SUNDAY, OCTOBER 21
Join John Kennedy at Old Pine Farm Natural Lands Trust for our “Walk in the Wild” on Sunday, October 21st, at 2:30 p.m. for a workshop on Burned Bowl making. We will discuss, demonstrate and practice primitive bowl and spoon making techniques. We will use coals to burn the center of the piece of wood we want to shape into a bowl. The charred wood is easier to remove than fresh wood, when scraping out the bowl.
John always wanted to be Buffalo Bill Cody. John fell in love with the Pine Barons at 5 years old, he’s fished & canoed the rivers, hiked the sand trails & gone to school there. John took several classes at Tom Browns survival school, that’s where the natural world opened up for him. Learning native living skills and survival skills is much more rewarding when practicing as a group; learning happens exponentially, it’s also much more fun!
We will meet at the Willoughby House at the end of Pine Avenue, off Good Intent Road in Blackwood Terrace, or you can put "340 Pine Avenue, Deptford" into your favorite mapping service. There is an additional small parking lot available at the end of Rankin Ave, one block from Pine Ave. Please check our Facebook for changes and directions. Information and questions: Charles White, 856-217-9138. Car pooling recommended. Free and open to all.
Our Mission
Old Pine Farm Natural Lands Trust is dedicated to the continued care of the woods, wetlands, and meadow it manages. We are continuing to acquire additional lots to connect the original Old Pine Farm acreage to a larger trail network running through the Blackwood Terrace area. We also strive to create a deciated green trail from the headwaters of Big Timber Creek to the Delaware River.
Currently, Old Pine Farm Natural Lands Trust is working toward the immediate goals of obtaining additional property to complete the greenway, as well as the purchase of Willoughby House.
Old Pine Farm
Consisting of more than 45 acres of land, Old Pine Farm is one of the few remaining natural and protected areas along the highly developed tidal portion of Big Timber Creek. It offers a variety of terrain, including a meadow, woodlands, and wetlands, while being surrounded on three sides by many acres of fresh water in the Big Timber Creek.
The original Old Pine Farm Natural Lands Trust includes land contiguous to the Big Timber Creek and the Willoughby property, roughly 33 acres. In 2001, the trust purchased an additional 5.1 acres south of Good Intent Road along Bayer Avenue, creating an area called Greenway I. After this purchase, the trustees established a goal of developing a trail to connect Greenway I to the original 33 acres. This lead to the 2003 purchase of another 9.6 acres of land at the end of Second Avenue. This property, Greenway II, adjoins Greenway I. In 2006, an additional 3.3 acres of land between First Avenue and McNaughton Avenue was obtained, creating Greenway III.Acquiring these properties can take up to several years per property, since the process involves getting approval from the New Jersey Green Acres program, finding funds for payment, having the land appraised, and doing a title search.