Landowners want to do right by their land, but often run into barriers. In the Southern Wildlife at Risk:  Family Forest Owners Offer a Solution report - being unsure of what to do, finding the right professionals and programs to assist them, and cost can often stop family forest owners from taking action to improve their property. The American Forest Foundation (AFF) is working to help break down these barriers by deploying a variety of strategies and innovations, which will ultimately increase the number of landowners actively stewarding their land.

WoodsCamp, a new tool introduced by AFF, is one of these innovations. It is helping break down barriers and expedite the process of getting started managing.

WoodsCamp provides landowners with local programs, experts and cost-assistance options that are most aligned with their goals and the conditions of their forests. On the flip side, WoodsCamp is also helping AFF and its partners to more efficiently pinpoint forest owners who might be a good fit for conservation programs focused on helping wildlife and improving clean water.

Skeeter and Madge wanted to be good stewards and restore it to a healthy forest; they wanted to live off it financially; and at the top of their list – they wanted to create better habitat for wildlife.

But the Sims had their work cut out for them. Several tracts of loblolly pine were mature and overgrown. They had large patches of privet and other invasive species. And their creek bed and spring were nearly dried up, due to drought and fallen oaks. These issues made many areas difficult to navigate, both for human and critter. To top it off, it had been a decade since anyone had seen a wild turkey.

Skeeter started by calling his county forester. They met several times, getting to know each other, walking the woods and discussing Skeeter’s goals. They mentally divided his property into sections, and first made an action plan to clean up his stands and make his timber more marketable. He’d need to create fire breaks, conduct prescribed burns, cut and thin the loblolly pines and tackle the privet. To cover the costs of restoring his creek bed, his forester recommended calling the local Natural Resources Conservation Services (NRCS) office and applying for cost share assistance.

Skeeter was glad to have found a trusted resource, and built a plan for his timber that would provide for him and his kids in the future. He was quickly learning it takes many resources to care for woodlands, which got him again thinking about what more he could do for wildlife.

“We really want to make the most of this incredible land – we want a section for timber and income, a section for wildlife, a section for the grandkids. But it’s hard to see how everything fits together to make sure it’s as productive as possible.” - Edwin "Skeeter" Sims

Being new to forest management, he found it difficult to wrap his head around everything. It was even harder to visualize when walking through the woods, especially given it was so overgrown and his boundaries were not clearly marked. What he needed was an aerial guideline.

In no time at all, Skeeter and Madge, with help from their family, county forester and Brandon, began to tackle their to-do list. A harvest was conducted, grasses were planted and Skeeter bought a few goats to help control the invasives. Next up would be hand thinning and fire breaks.

Already their efforts have started paying off. Skeeter spotted the first 6 female turkeys on the property, and a wonderful surprise, a covey of 20 bobwhite quail, a species that is rare in the area, have been found in the tall grass.

Skeeter is thankful to have found the resources he needs to take care of his forest. He hopes other landowners take advantage of WoodsCamp, so that they too can get the assistance needed to be good stewards.

Learn more about WoodsCamp and how AFF is engaging more landowners in forest stewardship by investing in innovations to remove barriers and streamline the process for landowners and foresters alike.