Dartmouth Natural Reserve Trust to preserve cranberry bog

For the first time in their over 50-year history, the Dartmouth Natural Reserve Trust owns a cranberry bog.

Acquired in 2023, the 43-acre, long-retired bog, located across the street from one of the trust’s reserves, had been on the organization’s radar prior to going for sale.

“When it came on the market, we were very excited to have the opportunity to purchase it,” said Development and Outreach Specialist Kendra Parker.

The trust purchased the bog through a fundraising campaign and grant funding from the state.

When the organization looks to acquire new properties, it looks for ways to connect and expand green spaces, Parker said.

The Dartmouth Natural Reserve Trust will maintain the bog as is and won’t allow anything larger than a sapling grow, she said.

The trust will also be putting in a small woodland trail, as well as trails that go through the bog, and will likely open to the public sometime in the fall of 2025.

Currently the trust has more reserves in South Dartmouth, so with the addition of the cranberry bog property, located on Flag Swamp Road, people who live in the northern part of town will have access to more hiking trails, which Parker said was “really exciting.”

“We have lots of wooded trails, we have the daffodil field, we have Allen’s mill, but we don’t have anything like a cranberry bog, so it’s really unique,” she added.