QUEENS COUNTY FARM MUSEUM, CREEDMOOR FARM, LITTLE NECK, NY
Queens, NY
Little Neck Pkwy., Commonwealth Blvd., S/O Grand Central Pkwy.
Historic House Museum
47.650 acres
Sponsor: Torrey Botanical Club
Date: September 29, 1979
Leader: James A. Trent and Andrew M. Greller
James A. Trent, President of the Queens County Farm Museum, led our Torrey group on a tour of the 18th century farmhouse.
The Queens County Farm Museum, founded in 1975, occupies what formerly constituted the farm of Creedmoor Psychiatric Center. It consists of a remarkably unspoiled 52 acre tract on the outwash plain at the foot of the terminal moraine. A unique farmyard complex still survives, consisting of a wood-frame farmhouse originally constructed about 1765, with a circa 1840 extension, and a number of buildings dating from the 1930s, including brooder houses, wagon sheds, cow barn, garages, three green houses and a potting shed. There is a three acre apple orchard to the north of the farmhouse. Major cultivation of the farm ceased in 1960. The farmyard and seven acres of land have been listed in the National Register of Historic Places and are a designated New York City Landmark.
By early 1980 the City of New York will assume title to the property from New York State, the present owners. Restoration of the buildings and grounds has been moving slowly since 1975 but is expected to move swiftly in late 1980 with a $275,000 construction contract to restore the exterior of the farmhouse and do some minor work on the other outbuildings including new utility connections. When fully restored in perhaps another five years, the Queens County Farm Museum will be New York City's only living historical farm recreation.
With Jim Trent and Andy Greller leading the way, we botanized the old fields, shrublands, prairies, and the terminal moraine. In the unmowed area near the farmhouse we found a field of yellow foxtail (Setaria lutescens) with Aster simplex. The aster had a lavender color form in addition to the more common white form. Also present here were Aster pilosus, cow vetch (Vicia cracca), and the ubiquitous Artemisia vulgaris. Walking west along the unpaved road we encountered a field that had grown up to a mixture of crab apples (Malus spp.). We sampled many of the ripe fruits, which varied widely in color (purple, red, yellow), size, and texture. In the old fields we spotted flickers, a large pheasant, and a hairy woodpecker. Some plants also seen here were
Indian hemp (Apocynum cannabinum)
Three-awn grass (Aristida sp.)
common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca)
a single groundsel tree (Baccharis halimifolia)
gray birch (Betula populifolia)
lamb's-quarter (Chenopodium album)
chicory (Cichorium intybus)
field thistle (Cirsium arvense)
flowering dogwood (Cornus florida)
Deptford pink (Dianthus armeria)
crabgrass (Digitaria sp.)
black walnut (Juglans nigra)
Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica)
Lychnis alba
sweet white clover (Melilotus alba)
carpetweed (Mollugo verticillata)
white mulberry (Morus alba)
panic grass (Panicum dichotomiflorum)
pokeberry (Phytolacca americana)
knot grass (Polygonum erectum?) in wood chips
Polygonum cespitosum
Polygonum scandens (on a chain link fence)
cottonwood (Populus deltoides)
purslane (Portulaca oleracea)
smooth sumac (Rhus glabra)
Rosa multiflora
bittersweet nightshade (Solanum dulcamara)
oriental bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus)
goldenrods:
Solidago canadensis
S. graminifolia
S. juncea
S. nemoralis
S. rugosa
S. speciosa
Near Commonwealth Boulevard we turned north onto the terminal moraine. The area was heavily disturbed when a root cellar was constructed about 45 years ago. Tree of heaven is common here (Ailanthus altissima). A beautiful stand of Aster cordifolius, Aster laevis, and Solidago speciosa drew the admiration of our group.
We entered the woods and soon passed to the mature forest on the crest of moraine and on the south-facing slope that marks the front of the terminal moraine. Large individuals of black oak (Quercus velutina) dominated the canopy layer. Other trees
pignut (Carya glabra)
mockernut (Carya tomentosa)
chestnut, really a shrub (Castanea dentata)
sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua)
tulip tree (Liriodendron tulipifera)
wild black cherry (Prunus serotina)
buckthorn (Rhamnus frangula)
sassafras (Sassafras albidum)
Flowering dogwood (Cornus florida) was the dominant understory tree. Blackhaw (Viburnum prunifolium) was the dominant shrub. Some wildflowers and grasses observed in the morainal woods were
autumn bent grass (Agrostis perennans)
white woodland aster (Aster divaricatus)
Solomon's-seal (Polygonatum pubescens)
dewberry (Rubus hispidus?)
cat briar (Smilax glauca)
false Solomon's-seal (Smilacina racemosa)
blue-stemmed goldenrod (Solidago caesia)
jumpseed (Tovara virginiana)
A single cultivated southern magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora) grows in a clearing on the slope behind the mansion which stands atop the moraine. The clearing is filled with grape (Vitis aestivalis?); it threatens to engulf the magnolia. The magnolia was badly damaged during a recent cold winter but appears to be recovering.
We walked down the steep morainal slope and noted the persisting evidence of a serious fire of a few years ago, apparently the result of arson. Once on the flatland, at the base of the slope, we headed south toward the main road. We struggled through shrubby old fields with
common blackberry (Rubus allegheniensis)
oriental bittersweet
grap
many small trees of species noted above
Aster laevis and Solidago speciosa were especially well developed here -- the color was breathtaking.
We passed through patches of little bluestem (Andropogon scoparius) with hair-cap moss (Polytrichum commune). Also present in and near these patches were sensitive fern (Onoclea sensibilis), bracken (Pteridium aquilinum), bayberry (Myrica pensylvanica), juniper (Juniperus virginiana), and the aster and goldenrod. This community was interpreted as a type of prairie, which has developed since cultivation ceased. It is likely that outliers of the "little Plains" of Bellerose, were present as original vegetation here. The "Little Plains," a natural prairie that formed a northwestern extension of the "Hempstead Plains," was a prominent feature of Bellerose as recently as the 1920's. Frequent fires will be needed to maintain the Andropogon prairie, however, because Malus, Morus, Liquidambar, and other trees are encroaching on all sides.
The tired and torn Torreyites returned to the farmhouse for a late lunch. We petted the goats, sheep, and geese, browsed at the flea market, and reluctantly left for home. Attendance was 7.
Agrostis perennans autumn bent grass
Ailanthus altissima tree-of-heaven
Apocynum cannabinum Indian hemp
Aristida sp. three-awn grass
Artemisia vulgaris common mugwort
Asclepias syriaca common milkweed
Aster laevis
Aster divaricatus white woodland aster
Aster pilosus
Aster simplex
Aster cordifolius
Baccharis halimifolia groundsel tree
Betula populifolia gray birch
Carya tomentosa mockernut hickory
Carya glabra pignut hickory
Castanea dentata American chestnut
Celastrus orbiculatus Asiatic bittersweet
Chenopodium album pigweed
Cichorium intybus chicory
Cirsium arvense field thistle
Cornus florida flowering dogwood
Dianthus armeria deptford pink
Digitaria sp. crabgrass
Euthamia graminifolia grass-leaved goldenrod
Juglans nigra black walnut
Juniperus virginiana red cedar
Liquidambar styraciflua sweetgum
Liriodendron tulipifera tulip tree
Lonicera japonica Japanese honeysuckle
Magnolia grandiflora southern magnolia
Malus spp. crab apples
Melilotus alba sweet white clover
Mollugo verticillata carpetweed
Morus alba white mulberry
Myrica pennsylvanica bayberry
Onoclea sensibilis sensitive fern
Panicum dichotomiflorum panic grass
Phytolacca americana pokeberry
Polygonatum pubescens hairy Solomon's seal
Polygonum erectum? knotweed
Polygonum cespitosum knotweed
Polygonum scandens climbing false buckwheat
Polygonum virginiana jumpseed
Polytrichum commune haircap moss
Populus deltoides cottonwood
Portulaca oleracea purslane
Prunus serotina black cherry tree
Pteridium aquilinum bracken fern
Quercus velutina black oak
Rhamnus frangula buckthorn
Rhus glabra smooth sumac
Rosa multiflora multiflora rose
Rubus hispidus? dewberry
Rubus allegheniensis common blackberry
Sassafras albidum sassafras
Schizachyrium scoparium little bluestem grass
Setaria glauca yellow foxtail
Silene latifolia white campion
Smilacina racemosa false Solomon's-seal
Smilax glauca sawbrier
Solanum dulcamara bittersweet nightshade
Solidago caesia blue-stemmed goldenrod
Solidago speciosa showy goldenrod
Solidago rugosa rough goldenrod
Solidago nemoralis
Solidago juncea early goldenrod
Solidago canadensis Canada goldenrod
Viburnum prunifolium blackhaw viburnum
Vicia cracca cow vetch
Vitis aestivalis summer grape