The Wehner Family Embraces the Ongoing Journey of Stewardship
June 21, 2023While Jon Wehner is in the business of grape growing at Chatham Vineyards on Church Creek, he doesn’t lose sight of a responsibility he gained from his father, Harrison.
Harrison and Jon’s mother, Joan, lifelong conservationists of property and buildings, purchased the property in Machipongo in 1979. They embraced the preservation of the 300 acres of land along with the historic home and outbuildings that make up Chatham Farm on Virginia’s Eastern Shore. Renovating the crumbling manor house dating back to 1818 turned into a 40-year project that included Jon and his two brothers. Joan Wehner’s tireless diligence led to the recent listing of the home on the National Register of Historic Places.
Jon gives full credit to his dad for being the visionary who didn’t want the essence of Chatham Farm erased. The idea of skinny 90-foot lots of waterfront property one day destroying what has been a working farm wrapped in history for four centuries was cringeworthy to him, though he certainly recognized future generations might not feel the same. That’s why in 2007 he poured his efforts into protecting the farm in perpetuity under an easement with the Virginia Outdoors Foundation. The protected land includes the historic home and several hundred acres, more than a mile of waterfront on Church Creek and the winery grounds among them.
Jon understands that good stewardship can be costly and often runs counter to traditional business thinking. “It’s a delicate balance,” he says. “But what we’re really after is sustainability.”
Stewardship and sustainability inform all the decisions that Jon and his wife, Mills, make in growing Chatham Vineyards on Church Creek that started with an initial planting of grapevines in 1999.
“My parents were conservationists; I dabble,” Jon says. “What I am doing is preserving the legacy that they started. It’s something I was taught and teach to my kids, who are very aware of preservation and why it matters.”
By creating a land trust, the core asset, Chatham Farm, the historic homes and all the outbuildings, are protected forever. Even if the property is sold, the restrictions remain in place as the creation of what’s essentially a buffer has taken development off the table.
“This was a voluntary act that guarantees the future of preservation of farming and hopefully of what will be standing for generations to come,” Jon says. “It’s not about me and my kids. This is really in place for the following generation.”
Stewardship requires thoughtful decision-making. When Jon planted the first vines, he considered the effect of runoff, an environmental issue that threatens the health of the Chesapeake Bay watershed.
“We put in very shallow swales,” he says. “When we get heavy rains, the water runs out of the vineyard into the swales and those swales run toward an irrigation pond. Before the water gets to the pond, it goes through a 5-acre grass buffer that we voluntarily took out of production for farming. We’ve left it in wild, heavy grasses. The idea is all of the farm’s runoff goes toward the swales and runs toward the buffer into the irrigation pond — which is the opposite direction of the Bay.”
Rather than farming a small area known as Easter Field, which is proximity to Church Creek, Harrison Wehner chose to take it out of production due to the concern of soil erosion.
Years ago, the Wehner family installed bluebird boxes near the vineyard. Bluebirds thrive at Chatham Vineyards and eat many of the insects that could potentially damage the vines.
“Have we made a difference?” Jon asks. “I think so. It’s those little things. It’s 100 things that go toward stewardship — much like all that goes into sustainable viticulture — and it’s also teaching the generation behind us purpose.”
When Jon bought wind machines to protect against frost in the vineyard, the only ones available were a bright red color. That would detract from the picturesque view that’s been the same for more than 100 years.
“We repainted the wind machines silver white, and you can almost see through them,” Jon says. “We wanted to tastefully blend them in to the horizontal and vertical viewshed of Chatham.”
In consultation with Joan, who remains an avid gardener, Jon planted numerous trees at Chatham. “My mother is really thoughtful about native trees and things that are supposed to be in the landscape,” he says.
Jon practices mechanical cultivation under the trellis using eco-friendly crab meal that is high in chitin and a good source of calcium that improves the health of the soil.
“As the vineyard matures, as the financial health of the company matures, we are able to make decisions that are moving in the right direction,” Jon says. “We’re practicing sustainably at our own pace.”
Keeping the out buildings intact — replacing the roof of an old chicken house for example, rather than tearing it down — is a gesture that preserves more than just an old structure. The way people lived and how they farmed is a history that doesn’t deserve to be erased.
Jon admits he doesn’t have all the answers nor will he in his lifetime. He’s humbled about his role, deflecting the credit to his parents and their appreciation of what came before them. This much he knows: Shortcuts and sustainability don’t align in his mind, whether it’s in the vineyard or as an entrusted steward.
“It’s not a race,” Jon says. “Slow and steady is what I’m interested in. Stewardship is not something you own. It’s something you are a part of. You are a steward to land and its history and to the people who lived there before you.”