Through the James River Buffer Program Dave and Anne Brown worked with Anne Marie Roberts of the James River Association on a tree buffer plan that worked for them. They wanted to expand some existing mature buffers on their property to prevent stream bank erosion, decrease flooding and increase wildlife habitat between their waterways and open hay land. Riparian buffers not only serve those functions, but also shade waterways for aquatic life, filter pollutants running off the land and increase forested acres overall.
This past spring their buffer project was coordinated by JRA and installed by Conservation Services, Inc. out of Waynesboro, VA. The planting was not the first step in the process; the site needed to be mowed first and some of the invasive species removed so they would not compete with the newly planted seedlings.
Approximately 3 acres were planted amounting to 963 seedlings in the ground!