By Matt Marrotte
With 2025 officially in the rearview mirror, we wanted to share more about the work we do throughout the year to keep trails open and expand the space where wildlife can thrive on the Land Trust’s preserves. Stewardship is more than just trail checking — it’s a way of giving back by bringing people together in nature to learn, care for the land, and connect with the outdoors.
One example of our work this past year is at the Kruger Preserve in Haddam Neck, where a pollinator garden was created through a collaboration with a local group, Haddam Neck Spirit. A pollinator garden is a garden filled with native flowers and plants that provide food and shelter for bees, butterflies, and other beneficial pollinators. We assisted with planning and designing a new space using donated plants along a stonewall welcoming you at the trailhead. It’s a simple example of how thoughtful stewardship can strengthen both habitat and the visitor experience.
The past 8 years of me learning alongside other volunteer stewards has allowed me to observe and grow new skill sets, including more knowledge on engineering. One project this past year included repairs to a bridge over a seasonal brook. We needed to incorporate engineering principles and the process started with a few stewards evaluating what lumber, hardware, and tools were needed. We accomplished our repairs by strengthening stringers, leveling the deck, and adding abutments to increase the longevity of the bridge. An important aspect of volunteer work is the way that it brings people together from different backgrounds and allows us to work together. Appreciating what others can bring from their work and life experiences certainly helped with this plan, as the process started with much discussion between volunteers to plan the project before beginning the work.
We had the idea of building bluebird houses to install at the Harris Preserve in Middletown. The project first started in a heated workshop for all of the measuring and constructing of the bird houses. We then carved through the snow to explore where we could install them before the nesting period began.
Collaboration is also an important aspect to the Land Trust. Over the summer, two of our stewards volunteered to do a few workshops on invasive plants in conjunction with a summer camp for kids operated by Fire Ring Farm and Everyone Outside. Under the watchful guidance of our stewards, the campers learned how to identify invasive species, how they interfere with native species, and how to remove them. We also had the pleasure of working with The Rockfall Foundation and Flora & Friends on invasive workshops at their preserve and hosting an event with stewardship at the Palmer Taylor Preserve.
These are just a few examples of our work from the past year. Throughout 2025, volunteer stewards kept busy on a multitude of other projects, like trail maintenance, habitat management, and general upkeep of Land Trust preserves.
It fills my cup to help where I can, meet people, learn something new, find that cool spot for a photo, or even just find a place to sit and listen to what nature is doing when we really quiet ourselves.