In January, the final phase of an orchard restoration project was completed at Dorris Ranch in Springfield. Thousands of blight-infected filbert trees—also known as hazelnuts—were painstakingly replaced. Recently, park rangers discovered someone—or something—uprooted and destroyed a large section of saplings.
The baby filbert trees had taken root, but still looked like sticks in the ground, with markers, said Kenny Weigandt with Willamalane Parks and Recreation District, which operates historic Dorris Ranch. Weigandt said all the destroyed saplings must now be replanted.
“We’re really asking for the public’s help at this point. We want people to really respect the orchards by staying on designated paths," he said. "The other thing that’s really important is keeping dogs on a leash. Because dogs want to run and if they see an open field, they’re gonna want to run through it. But that could significantly damage the orchards.”
Weigandt said the damage may have been an act of vandalism. Visitors can use the park hotline to report suspicious activity by dialing 541-736-4104.
Walking through the orchards at Dorris Ranch, visitors can observe the life cycle of a filbert tree, from a brand-new sapling to an 8-year-old prolific nut producer, to a hundred-year-old legacy tree.
Eastern Filbert Blight struck the orchards a decade ago. Following recommendations from the Oregon Department of Agriculture, roughly 40 acres of trees were cut down and mulched under, then replanted with blight-resistant varieties. The cutting and replanting happened in phases— 2012, 2022 and last November, 2024.
The 268-acre Dorris Ranch started as a filbert orchard in 1892 and is recognized as the first commercial filbert orchard in the United States. It’s listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
