Trees. They give us shade when it’s hot and are home to many species of birds, insects, and animals, providing them (and us) with food and shelter. New Hampshire is fortunate to have the second-highest percentage of forest cover in the country (84 percent) after #1 Maine (89 percent). We are also fortunate to have a brilliant palette of colorful trees gracing the landscape at this time of year. With the leaves changing color in response to the shorter and colder days of fall, chlorophyll production that was giving leaves their green color during summer slows down and then stops, revealing gorgeous reds, yellows, and browns in the leaves. Trees also help sequester (store) carbon in the ground, helping to reduce the effect of greenhouse gases that are harmful to Earth’s atmosphere.

But did you know that the beautiful monarch butterflies also need trees for shelter? They roost in maple trees and conifers, and as caterpillars, need access to milkweed pods that provide toxins to protect them from predators after they go from cocoon to monarch. If you want to help monarch butterflies continue their important role in our ecosystem (the monarch population has declined by 80 percent over the past 20 years), you can participate in the UNH milkweed pod collection program. Once milkweed pods dry out and turn grey or brown, the seeds can be harvested and delivered to the Sullivan County Conservation District offices in Newport for distribution around the state to improve the milkweed cover, which is the primary host plant for monarchs.

Cornish has several large tracts of uninterrupted forestland, predominantly consisting of hemlock hardwood-pine and Appalachian oak-pine, along with other hardwood trees. Fortunately, a large number of the private landowners of these forests have protected them with conservation easements; and the Cornish Town Forest also contributes to this important preserved forest area. Many forest management plans are in place to maintain forest health for sustainable harvesting, recreation, and wildlife. Because these large blocks are adjacent to each other, mammals with large ranges can be found here like moose, black bear, bobcat, coyote and fisher cat.

Cornish is fortunate to encompass over 1,000 acres of undeveloped public lands. These include Chase Island Wildlife Management Area, the Cornish Wildlife Management Area, Whitewater Brook Reservoir Lands, Cornish Recreation and Education Area (CREA), the Cornish Town Forest, and Saint Gaudens National Historical Park (SGNHP).

The SGNHP was not always part of the National Park system. In the 1880’s, Cornish, and much of New England, was experiencing an exodus of farmers; many were heading west to better lands or opportunities. Assuming the best of times for Cornish had passed, farmers often sold their land at a bargain price in order to move on. The once obscure rural farm community was changing to a desirable New England summer retreat location. Helping this evolution was Charles Beaman, a young corporate lawyer, who began to acquire property and homes in the northwest section of the town and a summer artists’ colony began to take shape.

Of the many artists attracted to Cornish, the most well-known was Augustus Saint Gaudens. A friend of Beaman’s, St. Gaudens first rented a dilapidated tavern, and in 1885 he purchased it as his summer home, calling it Aspet. He added studios and lived and sculpted there year-round until his death in 1907. Some of his Cornish neighbors were less than positive with his improvements, suggesting that the columned pergolas added to the tavern “made it look like an old New Hampshire farmer with a new set of false teeth”.

Following his death, his widow Augusta eventually created the Saint-Gaudens Memorial, with a museum, extensive formal gardens and permanent exhibits of the sculptor’s works. In 1959 it became a National Historic Site, and five years later it was acquired by the National Park Service, the only National Park in New Hampshire.

If you have never traveled up St. Gaudens Road from 12-A to visit this gem of a National Historical Park it is surely time to do so!! The Park is open from Memorial Day weekend until October 31. One can tour the original home, visit the studios, including large outdoor installations, such as the Shaw Memorial and “The Standing Lincoln”. Even in winter when the Park is officially closed, the grounds and trails are still open for walking, skiing, or snowshoeing, and the views of Mt. Ascutney framed by a setting sun are magnificent!

If you’ve ever wondered about the gigantic white flowering, bamboo-like plant that is prevalent along waterways and roadsides in Cornish and throughout the Upper Valley, you’re looking at Japanese Knotweed (knotweed), one of the most invasive plants in New Hampshire, and one of the most difficult to manage.

Why is Japanese Knotweed a problem? Like most invasives, knotweed chokes out native plant species by completely covering the area where it’s growing, which reduces the insect/pollinator population, and in turn deprives birds of an essential food source. Knotweed also affects soil and water quality, reducing beneficial insects and thus negatively impacting the fish population. Finally, knotweed along streams prevents the natural stabilization that occurs when dying trees and other native vegetation take hold to prevent erosion.

While it is possible to control Japanese Knotweed, it can take between 3-5 years of consistent attention to see progress. The NH Department of Agriculture, Markets & Food Invasive Species Coordinator Doug Cygan gives presentations on managing knotweed and other invasives. The methods Doug suggests for knotweed are smothering for smaller knotweed patches and areas that will be restored to food production, and spot treatment with herbicides for large scale infestations. Knotweed is not prone to spreading after it dies back, but the root can stay viable for up to 20 years.

Click this LINK for a short video on Japanese Knotweed management using non-chemical methods in the home garden by Matt Tarr, UNH Cooperative Extension Wildlife Specialist.

Click this LINK for extensive information and comprehensive photos on the identification and management of Japanese Knotweed by the NH Department of Agriculture. Scroll down toward the end of the article to see photos of just how invasive this plant is—it’s been known to come up through concrete basements, and its roots can extend between 25 and 60 feet.

Cornish soils have been cultivated in garden plots and farms to grow fruits, vegetables, herbs, and flowers ever since the first English-speaking settlers arrived here. Now a resurgence in gardening is underway in Cornish, buoyed by an interest in healthy living as a lifestyle.

Cornish soils, the New Hampshire growing season, and regular rainfall provide a firm foundation upon which thoughtful citizens can grow and preserve a year round supply of varied, interesting, and nutritious food. Shortages of seeds and plants, and even canning jars and freezers are evidence of the renewed interest in gardening.

Cornish soils and climate are supportive of livestock grazing on pastures. Beef, dairy, pork, lamb, goat and poultry thrive on fertile Cornish soil. Sheep’s wool produced on Cornish pastures in earlier times was prized by mill owners then building large woolen mills along the Merrimack River, as in Manchester and the Sugar River in Claremont. Merino sheep had been imported from Spain. The fine wool and woolen mill prices set off a financial boom and sheep numbers exploded. According to records, in 1835, 5,240 sheep grazed Cornish hillsides. The sheep and wool business eventually moved out West as new land was settled, providing new opportunities in Cornish for agricultural land use.

In 1888 the first of two creameries was built to process the milk of the 700 cows living on small Cornish farms at that time. The Cornish Creamery was operated as a co-op, and was located in Cornish Flat on Creamery Road, and it is now the home of garden book author Henry Homeyer. The second creamery, built in 1889, and known as Hillside Creamery, was located near the entrance to the Covered Bridge to Windsor.

Much to the credit of the Cornish farmers, their cows, their pastures, and the butter makers, butter made at the Cornish Creamery won the gold medal at the Paris Worlds’ Fair in 1900. Sadly, fire in 1915 knocked the Hillside Creamery out of commission.

In 1883 Charles C. Beaman , a wealthy New York City lawyer, with friends in Windsor, began buying farmland in Cornish on his way to creating a model farm to be known as the Blow-Me-Down Farm. By 1900 Beaman had 150 head of cattle, including 70 registered Jersey milk cows. The Blow-Me-Down grist mill was built by Mr. Beaman to grind grain for his farm and for nearly 100 other area farmers. Beaman and his son William are given credit for using best management practices on their farm. The Beaman family retained ownership of approximately 800 acres until 1950.

The Blow-Me-Down Gristmill on Rt. 12A, and 50 acres of the original Blow–Me-Down Farm are now part of the Saint Gaudens National Historic Site. Most of the rich soil along the river is now protected from development by conservation easements. Other Cornish lands, totaling approximately 3,000 acres, are also protected by conservation easements. The Cornish Conservation Commission uses the Cornish Conservation Fund to assist property owners wanting to place easements on their land.

In 1885 Charles and Hettie Beaman invited New York City friends Agusta and Augustus Saint-Gaudens to visit Cornish. Saint Gaudens then summered in Cornish until buying a house that is now the National Historic Site. Soon thereafter many noted and famous artists, friends of Saint Gaudens, including Charles A. Platt and Maxfield Parrish, followed him to Cornish, drawn by the beautiful Cornish landscape, climate and views of Mt. Ascutney. Some estimates put the number of artists living summers or year round near 100 during the period between 1885 and 1920. The beauty of the Cornish Colony gardens attracted national home and garden magazines throughout this period.

Two fine books, “This Land of Pure Delight” by Cornish’s John Dryfhout, and “A Place of Beauty, The Artists and Gardens of the Cornish Colony” by Alma Gilbert and Judith Tankard are available at Cornish’s George H. Stowell Free Library. Wikipedia shares details on The Cornish Colony, as well as on the lives of Charles A. Platt, Augustus Saint Gaudens, garden designer Ellen Biddle Shipman, Stephen Parrish, and the Augustus Saint Gaudens National Historic Site.

The Cornish “Natural Resources Inventory”, available through the Town of Cornish website, presents technical information relative to agricultural soils and their use in Cornish.