Standfordville
With hope and input from a variety of mindful professionals as well as the good intentions of the owners, this property can be a functional and beautiful landscape that benefits all types of life- from microscopic bacteria in the soil to larger mammals present in the area through simplicity and sustainability.
Removal of exotic and invasive plant material and reintroduction of native plants in their proper places as they could naturally find themselves, as well as functional and artistic accessories are the piece of this project that Harmonyscape can contribute to. This property began its historical transformation in the 1800’s going from a forested piece of land to being cleared for dairy farming and agriculture. It was very common in Dutchess County during this time to clear land for agricultural development thereby changing this environment for 100’s of years by displacing habitat and jeopardizing indigenous characteristics of the land that had value and function on a large scale. As agriculture declined in the area years later, many farms such as this one began downsizing and selling pieces of land for residential use. The visual and environmental result was maintaining the pasture as lawn and planting exotic plant material for ornamental value. The property is in a crucial location for reversing the inherited institutional maintenance because of the surrounding ecosystems. The land is in dire need of rehabilitation to restore the characteristics of the soil and water. This is a piece of land that could offer so much to wildlife and ecology. Riverines that flow through the property directly into a freshwater emergent wetland grace this landscape. Wetland habitats serve essential functions in an ecosystem, including acting as water filters, providing flood and erosion control, and furnishing food and homes for fish and wildlife. The objective is to emulate a natural, self-regulating system that is integrated ecologically with the landscape in which it occurs including the reintroduction of absent native flora and fauna with as little disturbance as possible. |
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