Fields & Forests
A new way to make your land work for you.
Fields & Forests works with Georgia and Alabama landowners to plant and grow trees on open fields, creating a new low- maintenance income opportunity. Fields & Forests is your one-stop shop, partnering with you and paying for each step of the process. When you enroll, you’ll receive guaranteed annual payments, long-term technical support from local professionals, and a new revenue stream.
Enrollment is now open to Georgia and Alabama landowners.
Benefits of Enrolling in Fields & Forests
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Multiple revenue streams. Landowners receive guaranteed annual payments of $30 per acre per year throughout the lifetime of their contract. Healthy trees also offer improved conditions for cattle and crops, and a higher-quality wood supply.
- Short term revenue: ongoing guaranteed annual payments
- Intermediate: Thinning during the length of your 30-year enrollment
- Long term revenue: Revenue from Higher Quality Timber Harvest.
- Keep All Profits: Landowners keep all revenue and profits generated from their land. We even pay for the tree planting at the beginning of enrollment and replanting after enrollment period ends (if landowner decides to continue to grow trees).
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Easy to get started. There is no previous forestry experience needed and no upfront costs. Forestry experts will guide you step-by-step through the planting and management process.
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Low maintenance income. Growing trees is a less labor-intensive income opportunity for landowners looking to make supplementary income or retire while ensuring the land is productive and generating income for owners and family members.
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Cover the cost of land ownership. Income to pay property taxes and other land management costs and optional estate planning from our local partners.
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Healthier land for farming, cattle raising, and recreation. Trees help create improved wildlife habitat, healthier soil quality, and shade for grazing cattle.
To Qualify
- Own at least 40 acres of open fields in Georgia or Alabama
- Land has not been forested for at least 10 years
- Commit to a 30-year enrollment period
- Sign up in the next few weeks to ensure you’ll be included in this winter’s planting season!
Connect with us at 229-231-3818 or fieldtoforest@forestfoundation.org to discuss if Fields & Forests fits your goals for your land.
What Happens After You Apply?
Our team will work with you to determine if Fields & Forests fits your goals for your land. Once you are ready, we will work with you to execute a 30-year landowner agreement. During this stage, you will also receive a forest management plan and will have optional access to estate planning legal services through one of our local partners.
We work with you to determine the eligible project acres, develop a planting plan, and hire local professionals to prepare your land for planting. The preparation will take place in the fall or early winter.
Our team has purchased loblolly pine seedlings that are adapted to your area for optimal growth and disease resistance. Our contracted foresters will oversee the on-the-ground-work of planting in the late winter or early spring.
Once your trees are planted, you will begin receiving $30 per acre per year for the 30-year contract.
Why We Started Fields & Forests
Across the United States, there are millions of acres of farmland owned by landowners looking to diversify their income. These lands offer prime growing conditions for a new resource: loblolly pine. This native tree species grows quickly and is incredibly adaptive, making it one of the most efficient trees for capturing and storing carbon. Carbon markets are a new opportunity for landowners to earn extra income and improve the health of their land.
Through Fields & Forests, the American Forest Foundation, a national non-profit, unlocks carbon markets for family landowners by removing the upfront costs and bureaucratic complexity.
Managing Your Land with Fields & Forests
Download the Fields & Forests Practice Overview below to learn more about our planting requirements, post-planting management basics, and a sample payment offer.
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Field to Forest Practice Overview
A detailed overview of the Field to Forest practice, available to landowners in Georgia.
Do you currently own 30 acres or more of forest?
The Family Forest Carbon Program provides financial and technical resources to help you improve the health and value of your woodland. Learn more.