Farmscape Ecology Program

a Hawthorne Valley Association Program

Harlemville Ecology and Land Use

Harlemville, the hamlet where Hawthorne Valley is located, is our home base. It is also home to a K-12 Waldorf school, a biodynamic farm, and programs for visitors from elsewhere. To provide a little background for these efforts, we and our colleagues have collected here various documents describing aspects of Harlemville and its history.

Ecology

  1. 2022 HVF Biodiversity Survey Report
  2. List of Wild-growing Plants Found at Hawthorne Valley Farm by the Farmscape Ecology Program (2003-2022)
  3. Hawthorne Valley Leatherwood Exclosure (established 2024)
  4. Grassland Bird Report 2025

Water Resources

  1. Summary of 2005 water quality work done in the creeks of Hawthorne Valley property by FEP, includes summary table. (944 Kb, pdf-format file)
  2. Summary Table from 2006 of measurements done on the “Farm Creek” by FEP (the creek that runs between the barn and the garden fields. (15 Kb, Excel-format file)
  3. A water-quality evaluation based on stream invertebrates and prepared by Kelly Nolan of Hudson Basin River Watch. (1,369 Kb, pdf-format file)
  4. A draft document prepared by the Farmscape Ecology Program and exploring water quality issues in the County. (156 Kb, pdf-format file)
  5. A summary document describing the general results of a Farmscape Ecology Program 2006 study of 90 ponds around Columbia County (some of these ponds were on Hawthorne Valley). (9,639 Kb, pdf-format file)
  6. A description and summary of the water chemistry work done by John Cronin and the Spring 2007 sophmore class. (44 Kb, Word-format file)
  7. A set of newspaper articles describing pond ecology around the County, prepared by the Farmscape Ecology Program (1,500 Kb, pdf-format file)
  8. A summary sheet describing aspects of the chemistry and ecology of Hawthorne Valley farm ponds based on work done by the Farmscape Ecology Program. (24 Kb, pdf-format file) For more details on methods, see the FEP pond  report.

Geology

  1. Nancy Dill’s summary of the history of the Elizaville Shale, the rock formation found in many parts of Hawthorne Valley. (27 Kb, Word-format file)

Current and Historical Land Use

  1. A nice set of slides comparing current and historical views of Harlemville, compiled by Mike Pewtherer. (PDF)
  2. A description of the Columbia County land use history prepared by FEP. (11,000 Kb, pdf-format file)
  3. A narrative describing Hawthorne Valley Farm production and extent around 1850, assembled by Martin Holdrege and FEP. (link to a web page with additional images)
  4. Management Thoughts for Hawthorne Valley Farm compiled in 2006 (PDF)
  5. 2014 FEP Thoughts on Hawthorne Valley Land Use (PDF)
  6. An interview of long-time Harlemville resident Al Krick by William and Andy Ward, ca. 1978, Part 1, Part 2. (mp3)

Hawthorne Valley Land Use Committee Documents

  1. Link to page of documents relating to the work of the Hawthorne Valley Land Use Committee.