Do Not Open Until Christmas 2030
Kindergarteners pose with their seedlings and the teachers who helped with the program.
For many years, The Rocks has partnered with nearby Bethlehem Elementary School for the Forevergreen Program. Students begin the program in kindergarten by planting their own Christmas trees at The Rocks. Over the next seven years, the children learn all about how fir trees grow, how tree farmers care for their crops, and what types of wildlife benefit from the ecosystem created by tree farms.
As you can see, this year's kindergarten class had a beautiful day of tree planting at The Rocks. They even made the evening news!
At The Rocks, we've been growing Christmas trees for over 35 years as part of our land conservation and management efforts. The 1,400-acre property was given to the Forest Society in 1978 by Martha Batchelder and John Lee, two of the grandchildren of John and Frances Glessner. In making the gift, Batchelder and Lee asked that the Forest Society always maintain a crop in the field, and for more than three decades, that crop has been Christmas trees.
(You can see our newly installed solar array in the background.)
These beautiful Christmas trees will be ready to harvest in 2030!