Bauer Park
Madison, Connecticut

The outdoor amphitheater area is set southwest of the Covered Bridge in the meadow. It can also easily seat 30 students. This area has a great view of the ponds, meadows and forests. (see Outdoor Classroom)

Barn
The Barn is a post and beam framed structure, framed of chestnut in an English style. The Barn is as old as the original part of the farmhouse; circa 1840, built on a native granite foundation. Cows were kept in the barn, as was hay in the loft. In 2001, there is a naturalized beehive established in the north double wall of the barn.

Berry Patch
The area named as the Berry Patch is an open clover and fescue grass meadow for the present. The Bishops leased the area for several years in the early 1990's for growing strawberries. The Bauers grew all kinds of crops in these highly fertile agricultural soils.

Boardwalks
There are three boardwalks in the Park in 2001. The Woodland Trail has a short boardwalk. This was built by a Boy Scout, to cross the 8 foot wide stream. There is another boardwalk near the two ponds; it enters a portion of the red maple wetland forest. The third boardwalk connects the Park with the High School property, through the woods and across a small tributary to the Neck River.

Chestnut Program
Two Chestnut research projects were started in 1999 at the Park. One project involves Sandra Anagnostakis, one of the world's renowned researchers on the revival of the American Chestnut. The American chestnut, Castanea dentate, was once a major tree component of the forests in the eastern half of the United States, until it was devastated by a European fungus. Dr. Anagnostakis is affiliated with the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, and the American Chestnut Foundation and has set up an experiment researching the sustainability and growth of chestnuts in various soil moisture regimes at the Bauer Park. Another scientist, Phil Gordon, is researching the growth and germination of Chestnuts and deer browsing of seedlings at the Park.

Chicken Coop
During the time the Bauer's farmed the land, there were at least 3 chicken coops on the property. One was removed, one has been burned, and the third has recently collapsed from a heavy snowfall in 1999. There are some plans to build a chicken coop on the property in 2002.

Coldframes
Coldframes were used by the Bauer's to start small seedlings of plants. The Clinton High School construction class students have built 20 feet of coldframes on the south side of the old 2 car garage (which is planned to be converted to a lab/classroom).

Community Gardens
There are two areas of the community gardens. The larger area at the north end of park was established in 1991 and now has about 100 twenty x twenty foot plots. South of the farmhouse are the organic community gardens. Irrigation water is available to the gardeners via a pump and faucet system connected to the pond. Citizens of Madison may rent a spot for the growing season.

Compost Bins
Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts built three compost bins.
They are for the Community Gardeners to use for recycling their garden debris.

Covered Bridge
The Covered Bridge located between the two ponds was designed and built by students from the Daniel Hand High School construction class in 2000/2001. It replaced a broken concrete slab which had originally served as a crossing over the stream. It was built using a post and beam construction techniques to mirror building designs of the 1800s, similar to the design style that the farmhouse and barn followed.

Daffodils
Daffodils have been planted by elementary school students from Island Avenue, Jeffrey, Academy and Ryerson Schools near the Bauer Park sign, in the lawn next to Copse Road. Another planting of unusual daffodil varieties is planned for a hillside area on the east side of the Park.

Deer Exclosure
A deer exclosure is constructed near the Woodland Trail, in the meadow, to observe what grazing pressure deer may be exerting on the vegetation in the meadow area. This was constructed in 1999, and will be monitored throughout the years.

Demonstration Gardens
The Demonstration Gardens were first planted in 2000 by graduates of a UCONN Master Gardener program to fulfill their project requirements. The plants are a demonstration of the crops that the Bauer's grew on the farm during their lifetime.

Farmhouse
The original farmhouse was purchased by Erwin Bauer's parents, Constantine and Louisa Bauer around 1904 when they moved from Brooklyn, New York, to Madison. It is estimated that around 1920, the kitchen wing, which included a pantry new indoor plumbing, new bathroom and master bedroom upstairs was added. The original 1840's square house was renovated; the massive stone central chimney was replaced with a brick chimney, the stairway removed and a built in china cabinet installed.

The original floors were covered with linoleum, and the plaster walls were wall papered with one layer of wallpaper. The linoleum and wallpaper were damaged and removed in 2000. The floors were sanded and protected with polyurethane. The walls were painted off white to brighten up the interior and prepare the house for historical displays.

Fishing
Fishing is allowed on the property, as long as licensing rules are followed. A catch and release policy is in effect to maintain the fish population. Removal of all fishing line, hooks and lures is strongly recommended, as multiple uses of the pond and its environs occurs by students and visitors of all ages.

Harvest Festival
Since October 1998, there has been a fall Harvest Festival at the Park. Over 1500 people attend each year, some to experience the farm for the very first time. They enjoy hay rides, music, petting farm animals, visiting the trails and barns, and just plain enjoying the open space vistas of the land, gardens, forests and ponds.

Honeybees
Honeybees have been living in the walls of the barn for many years. In 2001, new honeybee hives were established just west of the ponds for educational purposes.

Hoophouse
A plastic hoophouse was constructed adjacent to the toolhouse. The concrete walls which serve as a foundation were originally used as a storage and collection area for cow, chicken or horse manure until it was sufficient and the timing appropriate to spread on the vegetable crop areas or hayfields.

Lab/Classroom
The Lab/Classroom is really a two car garage that has been converted for different uses: namely for small groups to study nature in a protected area, have a workshop or a program. Some of the renovation work done in 2000 and 2001 was performed by the Daniel Hand High School Construction class students.

Meadows
Just west of the ponds is a meadow area which is not mowed every year. Differential mowing techniques will be attempted here to create various types of grass habitats, which in turn provide different habitats for mammals and birds.

Native Plant Gardens
The Native Plant Gardens were an idea conceived by a Park Board member to display landscape plants that are or were native to Madison to educated the general public as these plants are not so frequently used for foundation plantings. The plants were purchased from a Madison nursery and planted by the Newcomers Group.

Orchards
The Bauer's planted many types of fruits trees on the hillier portions of the farm. Most of the older trees are apple trees. 45 new dwarf apple trees were planted in the fall of 2000.

Organic Gardens
In 1998 there was a strong request to the Bauer Park Board of Directors to establish an organic gardening area. The area south of the farmhouse was selected as this area was not farmed for at least ten years prior to 1998. Plots are set up for Community Gardens similar to the north gardens.

Outdoor classrooms
There are currently three areas specifically set up for use as outdoor classroom areas. On the east side of the park, near a very large oak tree, is an area with informal benchs made with telephone poles. Near the vista on the Woodland Trail is a set of constructed wooden benches capable of seating 30 students.

Parking
Parking is generally restricted to the asphalt area located near the farmhouse. On occasions when a large special event is to occur, cars are parked in the hayfields east of the farmhouse. There are also limited parking spots located near the Community gardens for periodic use by gardeners.

Ponds
There are 4 ponds on the property; 3 on the west side of the park and 1 in the woods just off the Woodland Trail. They are gravel bottomed and are about 4 to 5 feet deep. Warm water fish such as sunfish, bass and pickerel and an occasional American eel can be found swimming in the brownish water. These ponds are not used for swimming. The Bauer's originally dug them for use in irrigating their crops.

Stargazing Platform
The platform was built by a Boy Scout in 2001, for the general public to use. A telescope could be placed on the concrete pad in the middle and users could walk around on the wooden platform without disturbing the telescope's position.

Tool Shed
The tool shed was re-sided by the DHHS construction class students in 2000.

Trails
There are 2 main trails at the park: The Woodland Trail is a 1 mile long loop. It plies through grassy meadows, wooded wetlands and past hillside cliffs and stone fences. The Pond Wetland trail is also a loop, passing by the two ponds, the covered bridge, near bluebird boxes and the forested wetland boardwalk.

Tree Nursery
The Tree nursery was started in the early development stages of the Park in hopes that the Town of Madison could use native trees in some of the landscaping projects around the Town. Many fine dogwoods and sugar maples are growing in the rows set out by a former Tree Warden of the Town.

Volunteering
Volunteers are always welcome to help pitch in at the park for various projects, like plotting out the Community Gardens in the spring, maintaining the Demonstration and Native plant gardens, being a docent for the farm museum, helping with the Harvest Festival in the fall and keeping the trails maintained.