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The Forestry Field Tour: A Story of Stewardship and Partnership By Dave Conser
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Longleaf regeneration in wiregrass understory. Photo by Randy Tate.
am stepped out onto his back porch, coffee cup in hand, as he did every morning. The view still warmed his heart: big, old, natural longleaf pine, more trees in some places, more scattered in others. They stood as silent sentinels of grandeur in the early morning light, but later this afternoon, they would sing in the breeze. What Sam had grown to love and appreciate was underneath the longleaf pines – the beautiful savanna of grasses and wildflowers – the native groundcover. He thought, “What once covered almost all of this local country, all across the southeastern United States, is now so rare.” Sam knew he was blessed to find this place for sale 17 years ago; the previous owner preserved these 40 acres of natural longleaf because it reminded him of his childhood and growing up on the land. For Sam, buying the property had been a no-brainer.
Sam wanted more longleaf, though, so he and his friends were hard at work establishing this native species on the other 80 acres as well. His friends, those helping him with the management of his land, would be here in a couple of hours to make the final preparations for tomorrow’s tour of his property. Sam’s wildlife biologist told him that as many as 60 or 70 folks might attend – foresters, wildlife biologists, other natural resource professionals, but mainly fellow landowners. He was happy to show the place off. They had made good progress, even though there was still much to accomplish. The door to the porch creaked open as his 7-year-old grandson, Billy, stepped out. Billy was visiting with his family, who had come for the tour, but as much as anything, to enjoy the land. “Grandpa, are they going to burn the trees tomorrow?” Sam replied, “If the weather holds out, they plan on burning a [ 20 ]
