Volunteer Spotlight
Historic Orange Grove Restoration
Long-Term Project Award for Cultural Resources
The Historic Orange Grove Restoration is a project of the Friends of Highlands Hammock State Park. The project took three years to complete.
The historic orange grove is an important cultural feature at the park. It is located on the park’s loop road, so it is seen by thousands of visitors each year.
Friends board member Tommy Gould led a committee to restore the site where W.L. Eiland planted the grove and built a one-room house. Other committee members were John Payne, Russ Sharp, Bill Boyd, J.B. Benton and John Gose, general manager of Lykes Bros. Inc. Citrus Division, and Tim Hurner, former director of UF/IFAS Extension, Highlands County.
The pioneer Skipper and Eiland families, who lived here in the late 1800s/early 1900s, cleared the land, planted groves and were a part of the cattle drives to the coast. When John Roebling acquired the hammock properties in the early 1930s, he maintained the existing groves. Two of the six Roebling groves were planted on old Skipper and Eiland groves. A 1935 map reveals total plantings of 1,563 citrus trees including Hamlins, sweet oranges, sour oranges, tangerines, grapefruit and lemons.
The Historic Orange Grove Restoration began in 2018 with the identification, collection and maturation of existing seedlings found within the park. Prior to replanting, Dr. Michael Rogers, director of the Citrus Research & Education Center in Lake Alfred, conducted tests.
Eighteen students of the Future Farmers of America chapter at Lake Placid High School removed seedlings and replanted them in the grove or nursery pots. They also constructed metal cages to protect the seedlings from deer. Fruit was collected and taken to Lykes Citrus Nursery, where it was raised before returning to the park for planting.
In September 2020, J.B. Benton used an auger to pre-drill the holes before park staff, friends members and volunteers completed the planting of 102 heirloom citrus trees covered with nets. The restored grove is historically accurate with the trees spaced to replicate the groves of the late 19th century.
Many volunteers contributed a collective 338 hours to the project.
2020 Florida State Parks Volunteer Recognition Award Winner