Grass Roots: Restoring Virginia’s Grassland Legacy
Virginia’s grassland habitats have suffered immense losses since European colonization. Some landowners are trying to reverse the trend.
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Partnerships in Smyth County help protect water quality on the North Fork of the Holston
Two easements in Smyth County are now protecting over five miles of stream banks on the North Fork of the Holston.
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Protecting the Clinch River Valley
Neal Kilgore remembers the fish kill on the Clinch River well. “I was about 10 years old. My friend and I would go fishing in the river often; but one day, all of a sudden, fish started coming up to the surface, struggling like they were trying to breathe. We had no idea what was…
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More Southside landowners embracing conservation easements
VOF has recorded more new open-space easements in Southside than in any other region during the last several years, including one of our largest ever, on 7,312 acres in Halifax that protects more than 10 miles of shoreline along the headwaters of the John H. Kerr Reservoir, and the Dan, Bannister, and Hyco rivers.
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Preserving the Jordan
Rappahannock is a small county with a big penchant for preservation. Of its 170,825 acres, roughly 35 percent, or 60,000 acres, are protected—half in Shenandoah National Park and half in conservation easements on private land, mostly held by the Virginia Outdoors Foundation. About 6,700 of VOF’s easement acres lie within the Jordan River watershed. From…
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Manage your mowing to benefit wildlife
Property owners mow their fields for different reasons. Some do it simply for aesthetics. Farmers often mow to keep trees from taking over fields that may one day be used for crops. Others mow to prevent invasive weeds such as autumn olive from spreading through pastures. Whatever the reason, mowing can have both positive and…
