Andrews APR Farm - 200 acres for sale - New Braintree, MA

This property has been farmed since the 1780's when the first settlements were established in New
Braintree. Many of the 60 acres of open fields have prime agricultural soils and are now certified organic.
The current owners have leased the property for more than twenty years to farmers in the region. There is
good access to the fields as they border town roads.  The Agricultural Preservation Restriction (APR) covers
all of the property offered for sale. The APR document is incorporated into the Property Profile. There are
requirements for the land to be in farm and or forest use.
There are limited provisions to seek approval of the Massachusetts Division of Agriculture for buildings
associated with farm use in locations that do not adversely impact the best farm soils.  There is a lease for a
septic field on a small portion of the property that was installed under a previous landowner. That
document is also included in this Profile. A recent Timber appraisal showed a net present value of over
$135,000 and the accompany stewardship plan describes how this resource can be improved over the
next ten years to provide periodic income into the future.
There is - or was - a long east- west cart path or trail that runs above the brook where native brook trout
were once caught by the Gleasons. The current owner used to keep the path open by cut it back
regularly. The brook runs downhill beneath the shade of Hemlocks and over small waterfalls. This woodland
path (once also an equestrian bridle t rail) meets an old stone wall that was the original boundary between
New Braintree and Hardwick. This path ends on the 18th century, now abandoned, Road from New Braintree
to the Hardwick Meeting House. There is a vernal pool hidden in the woods near the path - where bog iron
was once dug in the 18th century and taken to Old Furnace in Hardwick. It teems with life in the Spring,
and there is a large colony or family of American Beech Trees that is a peaceful spot , like a home.  There is a former Gleason Ice Pond below the Beaver Pond. Numerous arrowheads have been found on the property attesting to the Nipmucks who once lived in three separate villages on the nearby Ware River.  There is a small wet area of trees in the center of the south field where many arrowheads have been
found.