We burn a lot. We burn using what they call prescribed burning (vegetation creates heat), we burn using propane burners of several sizes. Because of mid-Atlantic weather, we will do prescribed burn followed with mechanical burn because of higher humidity but having to get the work done. We burn with horticultural vinegar. We also use […]
ACP Board of Directors at their 1st Quarter Director’s meeting voted unanimously to welcome Orange County Farmer Michael Carter to the Board. Michael Carter Jr. is an 11th generation farmer in the United States and is the 5th generation to farm on Carter Farms, his family’s century farm in Orange County, Virginia where he gives […]
We formulate our own all natural pasture and turfgrass amendments at Historic Rapidan Mill, Rapidan, VA. We call these Biogenicals and are a blend of naturally occurring compounds designed to maximize the health of ecolawn vegetation. Evaluation of our products and services is continuous. Our interests include impact on soil carbon, water holding capacity, greenhouse […]
I know memories are fuzzy things, but my guess is the average stay of our 18-30 aged employees is a year. When I close my eyes I can see many dozens of young people, in groups, and teams hauling trash out of rivers, tending soil microbes, planting native grasslands and successional forests, then gone like […]
ACP Board of Directors and Staff is thrilled to have Former Director Page Sullenberger join our Board of Advisors. Page helped lead the Center through substantive changes – a new location at Rapidan Mill, a new Development arm of the Center, and new strategic foci. Page’s roots run deep in the Piedmont and Shenandoah Valley […]
Earlier this year the VWHC awarded the 2021 Pollinator and Quail Habitat Conservation Award to Mark and Ann Kington – Owners of Grellen Farm – for their continued work to create large tracts of wildlife habitat in the Rapidan watershed of Central Virginia.
In short, it is not good for leaves to be left to sit after they fall on a lawn… that is, if you would like to continue to have a lawn of grass. If left alone, leaves will mat on top of the grass, cutting out your lawn’s access to sunlight and air, and quickly […]
Beaver dam analogs, also known as BDAs, are man-made structures built out of wood and other natural resources designed to replicate the form and function of beaver dams. ACP began working on BDAs this year with the intent to help restore freshwater ecosystems and make possible habitats more suitable for beavers. Being that BDAs are […]
The Virginia Wildlife Habitat Cooperative, a sector of the Center, is working with residents of Gordonsville, VA to develop pollinator and quail corridors through neighboring land parcels. These corridors are simply designated areas on the owner’s land that we work with to promote an environment that is as close to its natural state as much […]
For a client in the Gordonsville, Virginia area we took 2 acres of a cool season pasture and burned it with the mechanical burner 2x in the Spring to see what diversity we could coax from the seed bank. Results are Purple Lovegrass, Indian Grass, and lots of Little Bluestem. For wildflowers – Ironweed and […]