‘Lifelong project’ for couple aiming to rehabilitate Flamborough farmland

Five years ago when Lisa DiCesare and husband Brian Hansell bought DiCesare's dream farm property in west Flamborough, lots of things ran through their minds.

DiCesare could finally have the horse she wanted - in fact one came with the farm. The house was big and was the perfect place for their grown children to bring their kids.

It had a garden where they could fulfil their desire to live sustainably, as well as lot of space - 200 acres - to raise their brood of animals (dogs, cats, horses, a donkey, mini ponies, sheep, goats, chickens, guinea hens and quail).

But it would also be an important land stewardship project for them. They would aim to make the land and water as attractive and healthy as possible to all the plants and animals who once called it home. It was a responsibility they took seriously, particularly given their proximity to Christie Conservation Area and Spencer Creek.

Any water that comes through here goes there, same with the wildlife," DiCesare says. It's really important for us, we realize that just because there is a fence it does not disconnect us."

The couple - she's retired, he's a mental health consultant - who had lived in Greensville for close to 40 years were not new to land stewardship, undertaking smaller projects on their previous property.

And they were in a good position to begin with, they knew the former owner - family doctor David Richardson - and knew they could rely on his knowledge of the farm which was already well maintained.

Most Sunday mornings, the retired 82-year-old doctor can be found at the farm sharing coffee and stories that help the couple piece together their approach to the restoration of the land.

His recollection of farm stories are magical," DiCesare says of Richardson. And it's been a good way to transition for all of us."

One tip Richardson shared was that they would only get one hay harvest each year because of the bobolinks, a bird species at risk, who nest on the ground right after the first cut of hay comes off the field.

This tip was essential, given the couple's keen interest in protecting the bobolinks, and their desire to fill their barn with rescued animals, all in need of bedding.

The couple has also been working with Jeff Stock, a watershed stewardship technician with the Hamilton Conservation Area (HCA) who helped with the smaller projects they had undertaken at their Greensville home.

One of their first projects, with Stock's guidance, was to fence the creek that runs through their property to keep the farm animals and their manure out of the water. They also established a buffer on the banks of the stream to protect against erosion while re-establishing native vegetation, and in doing so, created pollinator habitats.

It's a hallmark project with dozens of volunteers planting 700 shrubs and herbaceous plants to improve the creek sides," Stock said, adding the HCA only owns about 10 per cent of the watersheds in the area, so we rely on private owners to undertake these projects."

Stock also helped the couple connect with the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association to create an environmental farm plan, which includes everything from helping eliminate invasive species to restoring native trees and rehabilitating wetland areas.

It's a labour of love that will take time but working with the experts at HCA, it helps," says DiCesare.

Apart from the wetland improvement, they are working to remove invasive species off of the property including phragmites, a fast-growing weed. Goats Clarke and Rusty will be hard at work this spring eradicating this and other invasive plants.

Three newly completed spring-fed ponds have been added to the farm and already they are drawing deer to the property.

The couple also took advantage of the federal government's 50 Million Trees Program to have 1,500 trees planted on the property.

The HCA has helped keep them in the loop about current and upcoming provincial and federal programs.

Grassland Ontario has partnered with them to rehabilitate the grasses on the farm to encourage the bobolinks to nest on the property, and Ducks Unlimited and HCA have helped with the three new ponds they have recently built. The next project is to re-establish the diverse species around the ponds to entice the turtles, frogs and other natural species to the area.

It has been a five-year process getting the ponds built on the property, partially due to the need for an archeological dig.

It was long but we didn't fight the process," said DiCesare. This is a lifelong project."

Hansell says: We take on the improvements because it's the right thing to do. The right thing for the land and the right thing to do for the future, and we hope it sets an example not just for our family but also locally and regionally."

Cathie Coward is a photojournalist at The Hamilton Spectator. ccoward@thespec.com