Burford Tree Nursery

Many of the trees planted by the GRCA come from its Burford Tree Nursery.

The 43 hectare (106 acre) nursery on Wight Road in Brant County grows more than 60,000 trees and shrubs each year.

It grows more than 60 species that are native to the Grand River watershed. They are grown from seed collected in four different seed zones to ensure they are well suited to the climate and physical characteristics of the watershed.

Nursery history

The first GRCA nursery was established at Belwood Lake in 1945 and later expanded in 1954.

In 1984, the late Lorraine Majowicz bequeathed the Burford property to the GRCA. After opening the Burford nursery, the Belwood Lake operation was closed. The Burford location provides a better climate for growing all of the species in the watershed.

The nursery does not handle tree sales. Information on how to order trees from the GRCA is found on our Tree planting page.

American Chestnut Program

In the 1900s, a deadly chestnut blight largely wiped out the American sweet chestnut. In 1987, the chestnut was declared a threatened species by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada and in 2004 was re-designated as endangered.

However, some trees escaped the blight, including one stand near the Burford Tree Nursery.

Over the years, nuts from those trees have been collected and distributed to other locations in the chestnut's traditional range.

Visit the website of the Canadian Chestnut Council for information on the National Chestnut Recovery Program.