Overview
This preserve is 14 hectares (35 acres) of wooded land in the Town of Woodstock, New Brunswick. It is owned by the town and is managed by the Nature Trust under a conservation lease agreement.
History
First identified as a significant natural area in the 1990s, Beardsley Hill has been protected under a conservation lease agreement since 2000. The purpose of this lease agreement is “to protect the ecological value of the woodland covered by it through voluntarily limiting human intervention”. In June of 2000, the Nature Trust signed a conservation lease agreement with the Town of Woodstock with the purpose of protecting the ecological value of the woodland through voluntary limiting human intervention. The lease was resigned in 2016 for another ten years.
Ecology
The Appalachian Hardwood Forest, an increasingly rare ecosystem in New Brunswick, characterizes this preserve. It includes examples of all the significant Appalachian Hardwood Forest tree species, and several rare and uncommon understory species. The western end is well drained and dominated by sugar maple, yellow birch, ironwood, American basswood, beech, and butternut trees. The eastern section is a cedar swamp housing provincially rare plant species such as plantain leaved sedge (Carex plantaginea), and wild leek (Allium tricoccum). This immature hardwood stand originated from an old cutover.
Access and Activities
New access to the nature preserve is in progress and website will be updated with new access point once it is established.
*The property is undeveloped and there are a variety of hazards and risks associated with accessing this preserve. While this nature preserve is open for public access, visitors must assume responsibility for their own actions and safety and are to use the land at their own risk.