President’s Message Summer 2023

I’m reminded of John Steinbeck’s novel “The Winter of Our Discontent.” This year’s field work became “The Summer of Our Discontent.”  We were anticipating Darling-58 deregulation, instead we got a nasty reminder of winter. The hard frost which hit all of New England, set young leaves and early Chestnut flowers back significantly. Deregulation never came. We take no solace in the fact that oak and beech were hit even harder. And then, we got hundred-year flooding in parts of VT.

So, during this summer of discontent, we set about salvaging plans made at our April annual meeting in Plymouth NH for a breakout year. To be honest, we weren’t sure deregulation would happen. Our plan was to train members on pollination and do some. We did. The first denuding and bagging training was at the Beaver Brook Association in Hollis, NH, which was followed by pollination training and pollinations made July 19th. Board member, Bill Coder and Chapter member Tim Elliott, among others were involved. Did you catch that – July 19th in southern NH!! VT training started with denuding and bagging in UVM’s permitted Hort Farm in June. Those trees were pollinated mostly with D58, but also some Chinese on one tree.  Ironically northernmost orchards were less affected by the frost, so pollination training and pollinations there were done July 13th, pictured below. When the harvest happens at the Hort Farm this fall, VT Public TV, which filmed the first two steps, will also film the harvest. Then, an episode of “Across the Fence”, will likely highlight TACF efforts. Thanks go out to Board member Ann Hazelrig for arranging it.

Location work continued. We revisited trees Marcus Bradley out planted on logged land in Thetford, VT 25 years ago. They have some blight. But that happens, especially when bears claw the trees open during their quest to get the nuts.  And boy were their marks visible! Marcus and new members, the Patrick Miller’s, took us to some trees on their property overlooking I-91 and the CT River Valley. Wild trees, where did they come from? Tall and healthy, no blight. But too tall, too steep and too hammered by frost to pollinate.

Board member Dan Jones led efforts to expand the Windsor Grasslands GCO with another 30 trees: three new sources of ten seedlings each. Holes were dug in advance, supplies were all there, and the Windsor Chestnut Coalition showed up big. So did New England Regional Science Coordinator, Kendra Collins and Bill Daley. We’re getting better at this – half the number of volunteers at last year’s planting did the same amount of planting, mulching and caging in half the time! The celebratory barbecue was good again. And, last year’s seedlings look good, despite soaked conditions. Last year the Windsor Grasslands were bone dry. Jeremy Hodge donated wood chip mulch again. Pictured below is VT/NH Chapter member Hunter Melville putting it to good use!

Discontent also came in the form of flooding at Board member Tom Estill’s Mount St. Joseph’s plantings in Rutland, VT which flowered last year. Tom’s trees also got hit with this year’s hard frost. But nothing keeps Tom from his outreach mission. He will get another 36 seedlings for school distribution this week. He never quits.

Field efforts have ended, with planned maintenance at the Lake St. Catherine Orchard, including members Dan Brooks, Alice Woods and Kendra’s intern Russell Gomory. Brush cutting, fence post salvaging, and a yearly look at how things are going for the remaining trees from a 2013-2014 planting effort. The orchard will eventually be inoculated for whatever science tells us from the trees’ responses. For seven years, the Lake St. Catherine Park staff did its part last – mowing the orchard. What a pleasure to find it had already been done and the remaining trees looking great! But alas, no bisexual catkins. Frost found them too.

National TACF has completed the Documentary film titled “Clear Day Thunder.” Soon we’ll schedule a viewing event, and also a TACF 40th Anniversary Celebration.

The next TACF President and CEO, Dr. William Pitt, will take over from Lisa Thompson on July 31, 2023, and oversee the August 4th (virtual- Zoom) Board meeting. The VT/NH Chapter sincerely thanks Lisa for her outstanding leadership that has brought us closer America chestnut restoration.

So, enjoy the rest of your summer – even if it was the “Summer of Our Discontent.” Fewer chestnuts will grow, but maybe D-58 will finally be deregulated by next season. We’ll be back at it in the fall with the harvest, a chapter Board meeting and renewed enthusiasm. Keep fingers crossed that we’ll get enough open pollination from this season to support next year’s free nut distribution – and use it to attract more new members!

I want to say “thank you” again, to everyone who worked to make this year’s field season happen. We are all volunteers.

Evan Fox, President

VT/NH Chapter, TACF