North County Land Trust is excited to announce ongoing collaboration with Xerces Society of Invertebrate Conservation at Dwelly Farm Conservation Area in Templeton to establish a firefly sanctuary!  Firefly sanctuaries are a relatively new concept to support protection of vitally important firefly habitat.  In June 2025, Richard Joyce, conservation biologist at Xerces Society, visited Dwelly for five … Read more

North County Land Trust (NCLT) has protected 32 acres of land in a permanent Conservation Restriction (CR), located in Hubbardston, Massachusetts. This CR not only ensures that the land remains forested and natural forever, but also expands a protected contiguous forest and trail network.   A Conservation Restriction is a way for a private landholder to … Read more

This summer, North County Land Trust hosted a photo contest celebrating the landscapes, wildlife, and outdoor experiences that make north central Massachusetts special. Over 100 photos were submitted, and four photos were selected by the judges as category winners and two weeks of public voting revealed a “People’s Choice” winner. Thank you to everyone who … Read more

This July, excavators came to the Ebenezer Keyes Conservation Area in Gardner, leveling long-standing piles of displaced sand and grading nearly 20 acres to gently rolling terrain. The work is the latest phase in an ambitious effort to convert a former development site into one of the region’s only inland sandplain grasslands—a globally rare ecosystem … Read more