Sierra Club to host talk about Lusscroft Farm

NEWTON — The Skylands Sierra Club Group will welcome guest speaker Kevin Mitchell, director of Lusscroft Farm on Tuesday, March 10, from 7-8:30 p.m.

Mitchell will introduce the audience to all that Lusscroft Farm has to offer for those who seek to enjoy the beauty of nature and recall the rural heritage of Sussex County.

Lusscroft Farm, with its early 20th century buildings, surrounding grounds, and inspiring scenic vistas, holds a unique place in the Garden State's agricultural history. Located on Neilson Road in Wantage Township, the land was purchased by retired executive James Turner and developed as a dairy farm between 1910 and 1930. In 1931, Turner donated the 1,050-acre farm to create the North Jersey Branch of the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station, which operated until 1970. The property contains 23 buildings including the Turner Mansion (a.k.a. Manorhouse), the manager's dwelling, the Outlook Lodge and the dairy barn and farm structures. The land includes fields and pastures, ponds, woodland and various barnyards.

In his talk for the Skylands Sierra Club Group, Kevin Mitchell also will provide information about the Heritage and Agriculture Association, a non-profit, volunteer "Friends Group" for the restoration of Lusscroft Farm. H&AA is working to stabilize and restore the neglected buildings of this agriculturally significant farm. The goal of the Association, in collaboration with the New Jersey Dept. of Environmental Protection is to create and maintain an agricultural heritage center with opportunities for education in the dairy industry, outdoor recreation, historical interpretation, equine trails, heirloom gardening, forestry, maple sugaring, farming, and organic gardening.

Skylands Sierra Club Group programs, held at the Unitarian Fellowship, 1 West Nelson Street, in Newton, are free and open to the public. For more information, contact Skylands Group Chair Susan Williams at SkylandsGroup@gmail.com or 973-600-4960.